Sometimes a team is as good as its captain. In the latest season of the IPL, we saw how important leadership is for a team. Chennai Super Kings went from the bottom of the table last year to winning the championship with almost the same team, all thanks to captain MS Dhoni. A good captain not just leads his team and takes important decisions but has to also motivate his teammates, give them roles suitable for them and be tactically aware of the match situation at all times. In this article, we discuss some of the best captains in the IPL who showcased exactly that.
Also read: Tendulkar Jr’s Debut to Rinku Singh’s Heroics: These Are the Best Moments of IPL 2023!
10.) Sachin Tendulkar – Mumbai Indians (2008-2011)
Playoffs / Titles: 2 Playoffs
Legendary Indian batsman and Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar was the captain of Mumbai Indians for the first 4 years of the IPL, from 2008 to 2011. While Mumbai couldn’t win a single trophy in that period, Sachin performed brilliantly with the bat and even got the orange cap in the 2010 season. Under his captaincy, MI did come close to the trophy when they finished runner’s up in 2010.
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9.) Shreyas Iyer – Delhi Capitals (2018-2020) & Kolkata Knight Riders (2022)
Playoffs / Titles: 2 Playoffs
Shreyas Iyer, a young Indian emerging talent in 2018 became the Delhi Daredevils captain midway through the season after Gautam Gambhir left his captaincy. He changed the fortunes of the Delhi team when in 2019 the team qualified for the playoffs after 7 years! In 2020, under his captaincy Delhi Capitals went on to play in the finals and ended up runners-up in that season.
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8.) Virat Kohli – Royal Challengers Bangalore (2013-2021)
Playoffs / Titles: 4 Playoffs
Virat Kohli became the youngest-ever IPL captain at the age of 22 when he captained RCB in 2011 for 3 matches. In 2013 he became the full-time captain of the team. He led the team for 143 matches only behind MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma and has the record for most runs as a captain of a side. Under his captaincy, the team went on to qualify for playoffs for 4 times but was never able to win the trophy.
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7.) Adam Gilchrist – Deccan Chargers (2009-2010) & Kings XI Punjab (2011-2013)
Playoffs / Titles: 1 IPL Title
Deccan Chargers ended last on the points table in the inaugural season of the IPL in 2008. In 2009, under the new captain, Adam Gilchrist the team found some new energy and went on to win the IPL trophy 2009. A lot of credit goes to Gilchrist’s captaincy who was able to find match-winners like Roht Sharma in the team’s journey.
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6.) Shane Warne – Rajasthan Royals (2008-2011)
Playoffs / Titles: 1 IPL Title
Leading a very underdog side in Rajasthan Royals in 2008, Shane Warne, the legendary Aussie spinner, created history by leading his team to win the inaugural IPL trophy. While the team didn’t have big names and T20 superstars of the time, Shane Warne backed his players and gave us some amazing new talents like Ravindra Jadeja and Yusuf Pathan.
“Rajasthan Royals are bidding for Shane Warne!”
15 years ago, we got our first Royal. And IPL… their first champion. 🏆💗 pic.twitter.com/lGnQ68ceMy
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) February 20, 2023
5.) David Warner – Sunrsirsers Hyderabad (2015-2021) & Delhi Capital (2023)
Playoffs / Titles: 1 IPL Title
Arguably one of the best batsmen in IPL history, David Warner is a run machine when he starts going. In 2015 he was made the captain of the SRH team and while his team didn’t do well that season, in 2016 under his captaincy SRH went on to win their first title win on the back of a stunning batting season for Warner.
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4.) Hardik Pandya – Gujarat Titans (2022-2023
Playoffs / Titles: 1 IPL Title
Before the start of the 2022 IPL, no one thought how good a captain Hardik Pandya will be for Gujarat Titans. In fact, almost everyone thought GT wouldn’t even qualify for the playoffs. However, Pandya showed some amazing captaincy skills and led his team to victory in their very first season!
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3.) Gautam Gambhir – Kolkata Knight Riders (2011-2017) & Delhi Daredevils (2010,2018)
Playoffs / Titles: 2 Title Wins
Kolkata Knight Riders did not really perform well in the first few seasons of the IPL and was often embroiled in troubles. In fact, in 2009 they even experimented with split captaincy which obviously did not work. In 2011, they brought in Gautam Gambhir, and their fortunes changed. And in 2012, KKR won their first IPL Trophy and 2 years later won their second title win.
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2.) Rohit Sharma – Mumbai Indians (2013-2023)
Playoffs / Titles: 5 Title Wins
One of the best IPL captains in history is Rohit Sharma, he became captain for Mumbai Indians and won the IPL Trophy in that very year. Not just that he went on to make Mumbai Indians one of the most successful IPL franchises winning them 5 IPL trophies.
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1.) MS Dhoni – Chennai Super Kings (2008-2023)
Playoffs / Titles: 5 Title Wins
It is no surprise that MS Dhoni is the number 1 IPL captain on this list. He is truly incredible as he is a brilliant captain and has one of the sharpest cricketing minds. His leadership helped CSK win 5 IPL trophies and more than that CSK qualified for the playoffs 12 times which just shows how consistent the team performed throughout the IPL.
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With that, we come to the end of the countdown of the best IPL captains in the league of all time. All these captains showed some great leadership skills and effectively motivates their teams to win and reach newer heights. While some were unlucky in winning the trophy, some made it too easy. In the next few years, we are sure to see some new captains who will show their mettle. We hope you enjoyed reading this article, and please comment down who you think deserved a place on this list and who could be the upcoming captain that will impress us in the next few seasons.