The world’s biggest sports entertainment, the most awaited 12th edition of IPL will be speculated to begin in September amid coronavirus pandemic with CSK and Mumbai Indians in the first match without fans. Here in this article, we will look at the one important aspect "Captaincy" is one of the important factors in any game. Under a good captain, the teams perform great. The performances of many captains and their teams in the IPL has proved this over these 12 editions.
Here let’s take a look at the best IPL captain in the IPL history and lead their team successfully:
M.S Dhoni:
One of the greatest players to play this sport ever, MS Dhoni is the most successful captain in the history of IPL. Playing for the teams CSK and Rising Pune Giants, this Indian legend has bagged the most IPL match wins in the history of IPL. Using his players wisely and precisely, MS Dhoni has lifted the IPL trophy 3 times with CSK in 2010,2011, and 2018.
Thala has also captained Rising Pune Supergiants when CSK faced a 2-year ban from IPL, because of the match-fixing scam. In the year 2018, he returned as the captain of CSK ns won the title with a team of veterans. Dhoni led the team as a true captain with the bat, keeping skills, and his well-known captaincy skills.
Matches played as captain: 174
Won: 104
Lost: 69
Win Percentage: 60.11%
Rohit Sharma:
Rohit Sharma, very well known as "hitman" is the captain of Mumbai Indians in IPL and is considered as one of the most successful captains in the history of IPL. Rohit Sharma who is very famous for his explosive batting and huge sixes has won a total of 4 IPL titles with the team so far. He is famous for his supercool captaincy even under the time of pressure and who can forget the IPL finals of 2013 and 2017. Even though MI was bowled to moderate scores, with Rohit’s supercool nature and accurate decisions, MI managed to lift the trophy. The way Rohit backing up his players is so famous and this has paved the way for Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya to the national team. Many of the MI fans also want Rohit to succeed Virat Kohli as the captain of the national team.
Matches Played as captain: 104
Won: 60
Lost: 42
Win Percentage: 58.65%
Gautam Gambhir:
Gautam Gambhir is one of the most successful captains in the IPL history and has also won a total of 2 IPL trophies so far. He is an attacking captain, who is not afraid to set an experimental field on the ground. The way Gamphir uses his players is a good example for other captains. His use of Sunil Narine in KKR has helped the team to rise two IPL trophies in the years 2012 and 2014. Apart from KKR, Gautam Gambhir has also captained Delhi Daredevils. His returns to Delhi in the year 2018 was disastrous when the team faced consecutive failures in the first 6 matches. He resigned from the post of captain and returned the full salary to the team management because of this.
Matches Played as captain: 129
Won: 71
Lost: 57
Win Percentage: 55.03%
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Shane Warne:
The spin magician from Australia, Shane Warne is a great captain that Australia has never used. It was under the great captaincy of Warne; Rajasthan Royals won its first and only title in the year 2008. RR had a team of rookies which was never on the expectation list of viewers. But through the amazing tactics and the captaincy of Shane Warne, this team managed to take the IPL trophy to their cabinet. The way Warne used the young players such as Ravindra Jadeja and Yousaf Pathan helped the team to raise their only trophy. Warne declared his retirement from IPL by the end of the 2011 edition of the IPL.
Matches Played as captain: 55
Won: 30
Lost: 24
Win Percentage: 54.5%
David Warner:
David Warner is one of the best batsmen in the history of the IPL. He has scored a total of 2824 IPL runs and leads in the list of most fifties with 36 half-centuries. Warner has a history of captaining the teams Delhi Daredevils and Sunrisers Hyderabad in the past. Though his stint as the captain of DD was a disaster, Warner won the IPL title for the team SRH in the year 2016. He was also the second-high scorer in that edition scoring 800+ runs and the greatest number of fifties in a single season. Warner led the team to great success with his bat and strategies at the time of great crises. His winning percentage of 55.31 is a great statistic for a player who didn't have great experience in leading any team before.
Matches Played as a captain: 47
Won: 25
Lost: 22
Win Percentage: 57%
Know here some of the big names of Cricket who struggled as captain in the IPL: Most Unsuccessful captains in the history of IPL
