IPL 2026 is moving towards its final stage as its 31 matches have been completed. The competition will be even tougher in the second half as the top teams look to maintain their dominance while the bottom teams on the points table struggle to survive.
From each team, there have been some outstanding performers in this first half. Although most of the actors have come out with good performances, the same cannot be said about some others. In this article, we will take a look at the worst performing batsmen from each team so far in IPL 2026.
The worst performing batsman of each team in IPL 2026 so far
CSK – Ruturaj Gaikwad
CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad is not having a good time at all in the tournament. Under his leadership, their team is ranked 8th in the points table and is struggling for pace and form.
CSK’s key players have also been injured at the worst possible time, so captain Gaikwad has his work cut out for them. Unfortunately, Gaikwad has not been able to hide his team’s disappointing performance with his individual brilliance.
In 6 matches, Gaikwad has scored only 82 runs at an average of 13.67 and strike rate of 112.32 and his highest score has been 28. He failed to reach double figures in 3 out of 6 matches.
MI – Suryakumar Yadav
Over the past 15 months, India’s T20I captain has come under intense scrutiny due to his poor form in T20 Internationals. SKY saved itself with a brilliant IPL 2025, where he scored over 700 runs, but the disappointing returns continued at the international level.
He got some form for a short time in the T20 series against New Zealand, but it suddenly proved to be bad. SKY managed to lead India to the T20 World Cup trophy, but his form with the bat was not good enough to write about.
There are some worrying signs as this disappointing performance has made its way into IPL 2026 as well. This year he has scored only 151 runs in 6 matches at an average of 20.17. SKY took over the captaincy of MI for one match this year and scored a half-century, but all was not well from both sides.
The strike rate of 151.25 shows that SKY is indeed scoring quickly, but he is not able to stick around long enough to make a real impact from those quick starts.
LSG – Nicholas Pooran
Over the past two years, Nicholas Pooran has thrashed bowlers around the world to establish himself as the best T20 batsman in the world. In 2025, Pooran retired completely from international cricket and for some reason he is not the force he used to be.
In IPL 2026, Pooran’s form has reached an all-time low, and he is completely unrecognizable from his former form. In In six innings, Pooran has scored just 51 runs at an average of 8.5 and a strike rate of around 80. His highest score in this tough test has been just 19, and in 4 out of 6 innings, he was out in single digits. In IPL 2026, no batsman has got more single digit dismissals than Puran.
PBKS – Nehal Vadhera
In IPL 2025, Vadhera was the mainstay behind the Punjab Kings innings, giving them the lead in the final overs. But this year that bounce is missing.
Vadhera has mostly been batting at the back end of the innings, but the results have not been there. He has only 40 runs in 4 innings at a strike rate of 111.11. Although PBKS are unbeaten at the moment, that may not be the case for long if Vadhera fails to perform well.
RCB – Jitesh Sharma
Defending champions Royal Challengers Bangalore have continued with the same batting prowess that won them the title last year. In 2025, Jitesh Sharma’s exploits at the back end complemented RCB’s aggressive approach, but in IPL 2026, he is missing.
This year the wicketkeeper has scored only 52 runs in 6 innings at a strike rate of 110.63 and an average of 10.40. RCB are currently second on the points table, but Jitesh’s inability to tee off in the death overs caused them to lose their most recent match against Delhi Capitals.
KKR – Finn Allen
After Finn Allen’s stellar performance in the T20 World Cup, it was expected that he would bring that great form to IPL 2026. Sadly, it was not to be.
While Allen has scored 192.85 in IPL 2026, he has scored only 81 runs in five innings. Despite being in good hitting form, Allen has been unable to last long and make any real impact. Due to these disappointing returns, KKR were forced to drop him midway through the tournament.
SRH – Salil Arora
In the last three matches, SRH’s interim captain Ishan Kishan selflessly gave up the wicketkeeping gloves and handed them over to Arora. But Arora has not been able to make any significant impact with the bat.
In five innings, he has scored 55 runs at a strike rate of 137.50 and an average of 13.75. Arora has mostly been batting lower down the order and has not made much impact on the backend.
GT – Shahrukh Khan
Gujarat Titans’ batting was criticized throughout the tournament for being overly dependent on its top three players. And rightly so.
Among the names who have made GT’s middle-order a serious force is M Sharukh Khan. In IPL 2026, he has scored only 35 runs in 4 innings at an average of 11.67 and strike rate of 140. His highest score so far has been just 17 runs and he has not made much of an impact with the bat.
DC- Nitish Rana
Rana was traded to Rajasthan Royals before this season, but could not justify his selection in the playing XI.
Rana played the first three matches of IPL 2026 for DC but missed the next two before returning for the sixth match. Overall, he has played only 4 out of 6 matches and scored just 77 runs with a high score of 57. Overall, he has scored at an average of 19.25 with a strike rate of 137.50.
RR – Shimron Hetmyer
Last year, Hetmyer often faced criticism for his inability to complete close chases. Due to these defeats, RR dropped to ninth place in the points table.
This year Hetmyer has not been able to perform at his best as a finisher. He has 39 runs in 4 innings at an average of 13 and strike rate of 114.70. His highest score in these four innings has been only 18 runs.
Also Read: LSG vs RR Dream11 Prediction Today Match, Dream11 Team Today, Fantasy Cricket Tips, Playing XI, Pitch Report, Injury Update – IPL 2026, Match 32
