IPL 2016: Top 10 Batsmen of Week 1 of Indian Premier League

In among the razzmatazz, music and the cheerleaders, the first week of the latest Indian Premier League season has just been contested, and already there have been some impressive displays of boundary-clearing batting.

Familiar names such as David Warner and AB de Villiers have hit the ground running, making some sizeable contributions for their respective teams, while a few lesser-known batsmen have also popped up with useful knocks. 

But did they make the cut for Bleacher Report's top 10 batsmen of the opening week?

Please note the selections are based on one-off individual performances rather than a player's cumulative efforts over the course of the week.

Performance: 45 off 30 balls

Primarily selected for his wily slow-bowling skills, Harbhajan Singh made a significant, if forlorn contribution to Mumbai Indians' paltry total of 121 in their clash against Rising Pune Supergiants.

Coming to the crease with the score on 51 for six in the 11th over, Singh used his vast experience to ensure his side's innings went the distance.

Then the spinner opened his shoulders to bludgeon 28 runs from the 10 balls he faced over the final two overs to at least make something of a game of it.

Performance: 59 not out off 42 balls

Although Delhi's bowlers did most of the damage, Quinton de Kock's slick and assured innings ensured there were no slip-ups as the Daredevils handed Kings XI Punjab a heavy beating.

The classy left-hander started warily before going through the gears to strike 10 boundaries and finish with an unbeaten half-century to his name.

De Kock has been in fine Twenty20 form of late, scoring 153 runs at a strike rate of 142.99 during the World T20, and he has registered six 45-plus scores in his last 10 innings.

Performance: 49 off 31 balls

After New Zealand's impressive showing at the World Twenty20, some fans could be forgiven for having already forgotten about Brendon McCullum.

However, the former Black Cap skipper unleashed a series of trademark blows here, three of which cleared the ropes, to send a reminder to the cricketing world that he can still do the business.

McCullum’s knock helped to power the Gujarat Lions to an impressive win over fellow IPL debutants Rising Pune Supergiants by seven wickets with two overs to spare.

Performance: 41 off 22 balls

After his disappointing IPL debut, where he registered a duck and missed a stumping, Jos Buttler bounced back with an explosive knock against Kolkata Knight Riders.

Coming to the wicket with the score on 109 for three and the game in the balance, the England star unleashed a flurry of shots, including three sixes, to make the result a formality.

Buttler is missing the start of the English domestic season to participate in this tournament, and a few more knocks like this could make him a fixture in the IPL for years to come.

Performance: 66 off 42 balls

In the tournament's opening game, Ajinkya Rahane's fluent innings helped catchily named debutants Rising Pune Supergiants record their first-ever IPL win with a minimum of fuss.

Set an under-par 121 by Mumbai, the 28-year-old mixed pleasing-on-the-eye straight drives with a trio of maximums to ensure his side eased to a comfortable victory.

After only making one appearance during India's disappointing World Twenty20 campaign, this classy knock was a decent reminder of what Rahane can do.

Performance: 74 off 47 balls

Despite being the second-highest ranked batsman in T20 Internationals, Aaron Finch was dropped at the beginning of Australia's recent World Twenty20 campaign in India.

The 29-year-old put that disappointment behind him in fine style here with a typically brutal innings to blast Gujarat Lions to their first-ever IPL win.

Surprisingly, Finch's knock didn't contain a single maximum; however, the stroke-maker peppered the boundary at will, including a trio of fours struck off compatriot Mitchell Johnson.

Performance: 84 off 54 balls

It's strange to describe an innings compiled at a strike rate of 155.55 as a sub-plot, but that's almost what Rohit Sharma's effort against Kolkata Knight Riders was.

While Jos Buttler and, somewhat surprisingly, Mitchell McClenaghan provided the fireworks at the other end, Sharma fluently glued the whole thing together to see his Mumbai Indians side over the line.

The owner of the highest-ever individual ODI score struck 12 boundaries in total, two of which went all the way, and only allowed 17 dot-balls.

Performance: 58 off 25 balls

David Warner put a run of poor form behind him by striking a lightning-fast half-century in Bangalore. However, he couldn't prevent his Sunrisers Hyderabad side from tumbling to defeat.

The normally relentless run machine has endured a dry spot of late, scoring just 38 runs in four innings during the World T20 and being shunted around the batting order.

However, his belligerent old self returned emphatically here, with a brutal display of power hitting that yielded nine boundaries, five of which cleared the ropes.

Performance: 35 off 10 balls

After their disappointing World T20 showing, India are on the lookout for some new blood, and talented youngster Sarfaraz Khan will certainly be on their radar after this effort.

The 18-year-old, who came to prominence with an innings of 439 when aged just 12 years old, has been in sparkling form for India U19s of late, scoring six half-centuries in his last eight knocks at that level.

And the talented youngster was clearly unfazed by the step up to the IPL, putting the icing on Royal Challengers Bangalore's cake by blasting seven boundaries from just 10 balls.

Performance: 82 off 42 balls

It says something that Virat Kohli's not-so-shabby 75 off 51 balls will have to live in the shadow of AB de Villiers' ballistic effort for Bangalore against Sunrisers Hyderabad.

The South African smashed the ball to all parts and, as well as clearing the boundary six times, was particularly severe on Ashish Reddy, clubbing the medium pacer for 22 runs from 11 balls.

Together with Kohli, he added 157 runs for the second wicket to help Royal Challengers record the first 200-plus total of the new IPL season, one that was far too much for their opponents.