Royal Challengers Bengaluru became the third franchise to successfully retain their Indian Premier League title after Virat Kohli inspired a five-wicket victory over Gujarat Titans in Sunday’s final at Ahmedabad.
Kohli led the way in which with an unbeaten 75 from 42 balls, sealing the trophy with a six, as RCB reached their goal of 156 with two overs to spare.
It was a 3rd successive IPL crown for England opener Phil Salt, whilst Jacob Bethell, Jordan Cox and Richard Gleeson were also members of Andy Flower’s triumphant squad.
The nineteenth edition of cricket’s biggest franchise tournament was dominated by the remarkable performances of 15-year-old opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who secured the Orange Cap with 776 runs at a staggering strike rate of 237.30 – the six-hitting sensation struck one century and five half-centuries, including three agonising dismissals within the nineties in his last 4 innings as Rajasthan Royals were beaten within the play-offs.
With a house white-ball series against India on the horizon, the impact of England’s representatives had somewhat mixed results.
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Jos Buttler (Gujarat Titans)
All eyes were on Jos Buttler after a hugely disappointing T20 World Cup campaign.
Nevertheless, the previous England white-ball captain produced one more solid display on the IPL.
Batting at No.3 in a formidable top order alongside Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill, Buttler amassed 526 runs at a mean of 37.57 and strike rate 152.46, with 4 half-centuries, but his Gujarat Titans side fell just short at the ultimate hurdle.
This was the fourth IPL campaign through which Buttler has surpassed 500 runs in what was a season of consistent starts for the 35-year-old, with eight innings between 25-39 and a high rating of 60 against Lucknow Super Giants.
Jos Buttler has rediscovered some form ahead of the international summer
PICTURES: Alamy
Jofra Archer (Rajasthan Royals)
While many questioned the absence of England’s premier fast bowler from the primary Test squad of the summer to fulfil his franchise commitment, Jofra Archer enjoyed his most efficient IPL season to this point with 25 wickets – the third-most within the competition – at a mean of 22.36 and an economy rate of 9.31.
An ever-present for the Rajasthan Royals, the 31-year-old proved a consistent threat within the powerplay overs and only went and not using a wicket on two occasions – coincidentally each league stage meetings with Gujarat Titans.
Archer’s best performance got here in a vital victory over Mumbai Indians of their final game of the league phase to secure a play-off spot, smashing 32 off 15 balls after which claiming impressive figures of 3-17 from 4 overs but his wait for a primary IPL title goes on because the Gujarat Titans openers once more proved too good with a big first-wicket stand.
Jofra Archer has 84 wickets across six IPL seasons
Phil Salt and Jacob Bethell (Royal Challengers Bengaluru)
A hat-trick of IPL trophies isn’t any mean feat, even when Salt was unable to make the identical level of contribution at the highest of the order than in his previous two seasons.
Salt only featured in the primary six games of the competition before a finger injury curtailed his involvement, though the explosive opener had displayed some early encouraging signs, scoring 202 runs at a mean of 33.66 and a strike rate of 168.33, including a match-defining 78 from 36 balls against Mumbai Indians.
Bethell was a reputation on everyone’s lips following his superb century within the T20 World Cup semi-final but it surely proved to be a frustrating IPL stint with the champions from a person perspective.
England’s star boy was made to attend for his opportunity as Royal Challengers Bengaluru opted for West Indies all-rounder Romario Shepherd of their preferred XI but when filling in for the injured Phil Salt, only managed to attain 96 runs in seven innings at a mean of just 13.71, with a run-a-ball 27 against Mumbai Indians his largest contribution, before similarly suffering an injury to his finger which meant he missed the play-off stage.
Jacob Bethell shall be seeking to put a disappointing IPL campaign behind him as he prepares for a return to the Test arena
PICTURE: Robbie Stephenson/PA
Will Jacks (Mumbai Indians)
All-rounder Will Jacks only joined up with the Mumbai Indians squad midway through the tournament after being granted break day following a busy winter schedule, chipping in with 139 runs at a mean of 27.80 and a really healthy strike rate in excess of 180 – his off-spin was a rarely used commodity with just two wickets in lower than nine overs sent down.
Jacks made his top rating of 46 in his first game, operating as an opener before being utilised in the center order, where he produced a match-winning cameo of 25 from 10 balls against Punjab Kings – their fourth and final win of a disappointing campaign for one in every of the pre-tournament favourites.
Jamie Overton (Chennai Super Kings)
Jamie Overton showcased his price with each bat and ball for Chennai Super Kings, before having to return home early with a thigh injury,
The hard-hitting all-rounder added 136 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 158.13 with two notable defiant lower order cameos in his first two games, in addition to 14 wickets at a commendable average of 17.78 and 8.89 economy rate which included figures of 4-18 against Delhi Capitals and 3-36 in his final game against Lucknow Super Giants.
Liam Livingstone and David Payne (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
Liam Livingstone was a major purchase on the IPL auction when the Sunrisers Hyderabad landed the England all-rounder after an intense bidding war, though he only went on to make two appearances for the Orange Army, scoring 15 runs, and may find himself searching for a fifth franchise to represent as he looks to rediscover the impact he made with Punjab Kings in 2022.
Experienced left-arm seamer David Payne also featured just twice for SRH as a late substitute, taking two wickets, just for an ankle injury to finish his tournament early which has subsequently ruled him out of Gloucestershire’s Vitality Blast campaign.
The watchers-on
Tom Banton, Luke Wood (each Gujarat Titans) and Jordan Cox (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) all did not make an appearance after being picked up within the auction, with Banton sustaining a finger injury which ruled out any unlikely involvement within the second half of the tournament.
Meanwhile, Rehan Ahmed (Delhi Capitals) and Richard Gleeson (RCB) each also didn’t play a game after signing as late injury replacements.
Rehan Ahmed was not given the prospect to make his IPL debut
PICTURE: Franga Jayawardena/AP
Are England stocks within the IPL on the decline?
On the entire, it has been a largely underwhelming campaign for England players on the IPL and this is maybe evidence of an emerging trend.
Whilst sixteen players were signed up at various stages in 2026, only eight featured which was two lower than a 12 months earlier and ten fewer than were contracted in 2024.
There was seemingly growing tensions between the IPL and England, with Ben Duckett following within the footsteps of Harry Brook and withdrawing on the eve of the tournament, whilst Rajasthan Royals head coach Kumar Sangakkara voiced his disappointment at seeing Sam Curran in motion for Surrey within the Vitality Blast after leaving the IPL with what was deemed a ‘season-ending’ groin injury.
England’s indifferent performances on the worldwide stage in recent major white-ball tournaments could have also impacted demand from Indian franchises, whilst players from Recent Zealand and South Africa have turn out to be of greater interest.
The domestic talent pool in India also continues to grow at a rare rate which has perhaps reduced the reliance on overseas imports to a certain degree.
With many English players sat on the sidelines, there was debate brewing within the local media from players and pundits around the advantage of being inside the franchise environment versus playing more frequently initially of the England domestic season.
Bethell was the topic but Rehan Ahmed can also be within the England Test squad and has missed 4 County Championship rounds for Leicestershire in Division One after receiving a call-up, whilst Essex batter Cox has potentially slipped down the pecking order as the following batter in line across all formats for England having not played a competitive game since February.
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