The highest IPL score at each batting position tells the story of this league better than any other list. Chris Gayle smashed 175 not out while opening for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 2013, and no one has gone past it in any position since. But every batting spot has its own hero. AB de Villiers owns No. 3 with 133 not out. Rishabh Pant owns No. 4 with 128 not out. And the tail has its own legends, from Andre Russell at No. 7 to Rashid Khan at No. 8. Here is the full list of the highest scores ever made at every batting position in IPL history, from the openers down to No. 11, with the top five at each spot and the history behind these records.
The numbers come from official IPL records and leading cricket stat sources. Where the exact season of a very old lower order record could not be verified, that is marked clearly instead of guessed.
IPL Stats Highest Scores at Each Batting Position Overview
| Record | Detail |
|---|---|
| Headline record | 175 not out by Chris Gayle, the highest individual score in IPL history, made as an opener |
| When it was set | 23 April 2013, Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Pune Warriors India at the Chinnaswamy Stadium |
| How the knock went | 66 balls, 13 fours and 17 sixes, the fastest century in IPL history from 30 balls |
| Positions covered | Opener through No. 11, with a top five list at every spot |
| Only centuries below No. 5 | None. No batter has ever scored a hundred at No. 6 or lower in the IPL |
Top 10 Highest Scores at Each Batting Position
| Rank | Position | Player | Team | Score | Season | Match |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Opener | Chris Gayle | RCB | 175* | 2013 | vs Pune Warriors India at Chinnaswamy Stadium |
| 2 | No. 3 | AB de Villiers | RCB | 133* | 2015 | vs Mumbai Indians at Wankhede Stadium |
| 3 | No. 4 | Rishabh Pant | Delhi Daredevils | 128* | 2018 | vs Sunrisers Hyderabad |
| 4 | No. 5 | Ben Stokes | Rising Pune Supergiant | 103* | 2017 | vs Gujarat Lions |
| 5 | No. 6 | Hardik Pandya | Mumbai Indians | 91 | 2019 | vs Kolkata Knight Riders |
| 6 | No. 7 | Andre Russell | Kolkata Knight Riders | 88* | 2018 | vs Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk |
| 7 | No. 8 | Rashid Khan | Gujarat Titans | 79* | 2023 | vs Mumbai Indians at Wankhede Stadium |
| 8 | No. 9 | Harbhajan Singh | Mumbai Indians | 49* | 2010 | vs Deccan Chargers at DY Patil Stadium |
| 9 | No. 10 | Dhawal Kulkarni | Rajasthan Royals | 28* | Not officially confirmed | Not officially confirmed |
| 10 | No. 11 | Munaf Patel | Rajasthan Royals | 23* | Not officially confirmed | Not officially confirmed |
Top 5 Highest Scores at Every Batting Position
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opener | Chris Gayle (RCB) 175* | Brendon McCullum (KKR) 158* | KL Rahul (DC) 152* | Abhishek Sharma (SRH) 141 | Quinton de Kock (LSG) 140* |
| No. 3 | AB de Villiers (RCB) 133* | AB de Villiers (RCB) 129* | Marcus Stoinis (LSG) 124 | Sanju Samson (RR) 119 | Rishabh Pant (LSG) 118* |
| No. 4 | Rishabh Pant (DC) 128* | Andrew Symonds (DC) 117* | Wriddhiman Saha (PBKS) 115* | Heinrich Klaasen (SRH) 104 | Suryakumar Yadav (MI) 102* |
| No. 5 | Ben Stokes (RPSG) 103* | David Miller (PBKS) 101* | Tilak Varma (MI) 101* | Yusuf Pathan (RR) 100 | David Miller (GT) 94* |
| No. 6 | Hardik Pandya (MI) 91 | Jitesh Sharma (RCB) 85* | MS Dhoni (CSK) 84* | Dinesh Karthik (RCB) 83 | Chris Morris (DC) 82* |
| No. 7 | Andre Russell (KKR) 88* | Dwayne Bravo (CSK) 68 | Shardul Thakur (KKR) 68 | Dinesh Karthik (RCB) 66* | Ashutosh Sharma (DC) 66* |
| No. 8 | Rashid Khan (GT) 79* | Pat Cummins (KKR) 66* | Harbhajan Singh (MI) 64 | Andre Russell (KKR) 64* | Ashutosh Sharma (PBKS) 61 |
| No. 9 | Harbhajan Singh (MI) 49* | Kuldeep Yadav (DC) 35* | Pat Cummins (SRH) 35* | Chris Morris (RR) 34* | Harbhajan Singh (MI) 33 |
| No. 10 | Dhawal Kulkarni (RR) 28* | Kagiso Rabada (PBKS) 25 | Umesh Yadav (KKR) 24* | Praveen Kumar (PBKS) 24 | Zaheer Khan (MI) 23* |
| No. 11 | Munaf Patel (RR) 23* | Dale Steyn (SRH) 19* | Akash Deep (RCB) 17 | Mohammed Siraj (RCB) 12* | Avesh Khan (LSG) 12 |
Record History
The very first IPL match in 2008 set the tone. Brendon McCullum smashed 158 not out as an opener for Kolkata Knight Riders against RCB at the Chinnaswamy. That knock stood as the highest score in IPL history for five years, until Chris Gayle destroyed Pune Warriors India with 175 not out in 2013. Gayle reached his hundred in just 30 balls, still the fastest in the league, and hit 17 sixes in that innings. The record has not moved since.
The No. 3 record belongs to AB de Villiers, and it came in two parts. In 2015 he made 133 not out against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede, batting at one drop and striking at over 225. A year later he returned to the same position and hammered 129 not out from only 52 balls against Gujarat Lions, with 12 sixes. No one has gone past his 133 not out at No. 3. Marcus Stoinis came closest in recent years with 124 for Lucknow Super Giants against Chennai Super Kings in 2024.
At No. 4, Andrew Symonds held the record for a decade with 117 not out for Deccan Chargers in 2008. Rishabh Pant broke it in style with 128 not out for Delhi Daredevils against Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2018. Wriddhiman Saha sits third with 115 not out, made in the 2014 final for Kings XI Punjab against Kolkata Knight Riders.
The No. 5 record is a tale of two great chases. David Miller made 101 not out for Kings XI Punjab against RCB in 2013. Then Ben Stokes produced 103 not out for Rising Pune Supergiant against Gujarat Lions in 2017 and took the record. In 2026, Tilak Varma joined the No. 5 century club with an unbeaten 101 for Mumbai Indians against Gujarat Titans at Ahmedabad, reaching his hundred in only 45 balls.
No one has scored a century at No. 6 or lower in the IPL. Hardik Pandya holds the No. 6 record with 91 from 34 balls for Mumbai Indians against Kolkata Knight Riders in 2019. That knock is also the highest IPL score by any batter at No. 6 or below except Russell. MS Dhoni sits third at this position with 84 not out for Chennai Super Kings against RCB in 2019.
The No. 7 record changed hands twice in three days in 2018. Dwayne Bravo made 68 for Chennai Super Kings against Mumbai Indians in the season opener. Then Andre Russell walked in at Chepauk against the same Chennai side and smashed an unbeaten 88 from 36 balls with 11 sixes, taking Kolkata Knight Riders past 200. It remains the greatest knock by a No. 7 in IPL history.
At No. 8, Pat Cummins held the record with 66 not out for Kolkata Knight Riders against Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede in 2021. Rashid Khan shattered it in 2023, making an unbeaten 79 from 32 balls for Gujarat Titans against Mumbai Indians at the same ground, with 10 sixes. Rashid also took 4 for 30 in that match, one of the great all round displays in league history.
The tail end records are the oldest. Harbhajan Singh made 49 not out from 18 balls at No. 9 for Mumbai Indians against Deccan Chargers in 2010, missing a fifty by one run. The No. 10 record is 28 not out by Dhawal Kulkarni of Rajasthan Royals, and the No. 11 record is 23 not out by Munaf Patel, also of Rajasthan Royals. Both are from the early years of the league, and their exact seasons could not be verified from reliable sources.
What This Record Tells Us
The list gets shorter as you go down the order, and that is no accident. Openers face the most balls, so all five of the highest scores in IPL history came from the top of the order. Once you reach No. 6, even the record holders could not reach a hundred. Hardik Pandya got closest with 91.
The middle order records belong to finishers and allrounders. Russell, Hardik, Dhoni, Dinesh Karthik and Chris Morris are players picked to win matches from tough spots, and their names fill the No. 6 and No. 7 lists. That shows how T20 cricket changed batting: teams now plan for big scores from positions that once belonged to tailenders.
The tail end records tell a different story. They belong to bowlers who could swing the bat. Harbhajan Singh appears twice, at No. 8 and No. 9, and Rashid Khan owns No. 8 outright. These knocks usually come in lost causes, but they show why teams value bowlers who can hit.
One more pattern stands out. RCB batters appear all over this list, from Gayle and de Villiers at the top to Jitesh Sharma, Dinesh Karthik and Akash Deep lower down. Big individual scores have always been part of that franchise. These marks are the targets the next generation chases every season, and squads keep getting reshaped around them ahead of the IPL 2027 retention deadline.
For more batting history, see the highest partnerships in IPL, the most century partnerships in IPL, the orange cap winners in IPL, the slowest centuries in IPL and the batters with the highest strike rates in an IPL innings. Official numbers can be checked on the official IPL website.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who has the highest score at each batting position in the IPL?
Chris Gayle holds the opener record with 175 not out. AB de Villiers holds No. 3 with 133 not out. Rishabh Pant holds No. 4 with 128 not out. Ben Stokes holds No. 5 with 103 not out. Hardik Pandya holds No. 6 with 91. Andre Russell holds No. 7 with 88 not out. Rashid Khan holds No. 8 with 79 not out. Harbhajan Singh holds No. 9 with 49 not out. Dhawal Kulkarni holds No. 10 with 28 not out. Munaf Patel holds No. 11 with 23 not out.
What is the highest score by an opener in IPL history?
Chris Gayle scored 175 not out for Royal Challengers Bengaluru against Pune Warriors India at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in 2013. It is also the highest individual score in IPL history by any batter in any position.
Who holds the highest score at No. 7 in the IPL?
Andre Russell holds the No. 7 record with an unbeaten 88 from 36 balls for Kolkata Knight Riders against Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk in 2018. He hit 11 sixes in that innings.
What is the highest score by a No. 8 batter in the IPL?
Rashid Khan holds the No. 8 record with an unbeaten 79 from 32 balls for Gujarat Titans against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede in 2023. He hit 10 sixes and also took 4 for 30 in the same match.
Has any batter scored a century at No. 6 or lower in the IPL?
No. The highest score at No. 6 is 91 by Hardik Pandya. The highest at No. 7 is 88 not out by Andre Russell. No batter has reached a hundred batting at No. 6 or below in IPL history.
Who scored the highest runs at No. 11 in the IPL?
Munaf Patel of Rajasthan Royals holds the No. 11 record with 23 not out. The exact season of that innings could not be verified from reliable sources.
Why do openers hold the highest scores in the IPL?
Openers face the most balls in an innings, so they have the best chance to build a big score. Batters lower down the order often arrive with only a few overs left, which is why the records fall sharply from No. 6 onwards.
Statistics updated through: 20 October 2026
