Best Captain in IPL as a record is a legacy. It is ever-changing and ever-evolving. If you are looking for all the potential candidates to be the best captain in the IPL, then you are at the right place. 

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has seen many great captains since its inception in 2008. Some of these captains have achieved great success and have set the bar for future captains to follow. 

From strategic decisions to inspiring leadership, these captains have been instrumental in helping their teams succeed and have come to define what it means to be a good leader. To appreciate their contribution, we’ve put together a comprehensive guide to the five best captains of all time in the IPL. From Gautam Gambhir to Rohit Sharma, these captains have led their teams to victory while displaying exceptional leadership skills and knowledge of the game. We’ll examine each captain’s career and achievements in the IPL and explore why they are considered among the best captains. Continue reading to discover the five best captains of all time in IPL history!

An Overview of the Best Captain in IPL

We all know that IPL is one of the world’s most popular T20 cricket competitions, with many talented players participating. The captain is the one who steers the entire team toward victory. 

Based on a captain’s decisions and strategies, the whole team proceeds further. Choices may go wrong at times, but the choice-maker stays with the team and leads from the front. 

Who are those individuals? Who are those leaders? 

We will discuss their leadership styles, strategies, successes, failures, and overall contributions to the IPL. We will also evaluate their impact on the game and the teams they led. 

So, without further ado, let’s look at the top 5 IPL Captains in particular and who could be the best captain in IPL. 

No. 1 – MS Dhoni IPL Career (CSK) | Best Captain in IPL

One of the most excellent and consistent players, Dhoni, was the Chennai Super Kings team. During the first season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), the Chennai Super Kings team acquired Mahendra Singh Dhoni, one of the key players, for $1.5 million. Under his guidance, CSK won the 2010, 2011, 2018, and 2021 Indian Premier League titles and the 2010 and 2014 Champions League T20 titles and ended up as a runner-up in the 2008, 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2019 IPL. 

He is regarded as one of the best captains in IPL history due to his remarkable achievements. He was also the most successful captain in terms of win percentage, with 60.2%. Dhoni’s reign as the CSK captain was very successful, as he led his team to victory in 72% of the games he captained.  

Dhoni’s Stats

In the 2020 and 2021 IPL seasons, Dhoni failed to exhibit his worth when he recorded 200 runs in 14 games in 2020 and 116 runs in 16 games in 2021, averaging 15.29 runs per game. In the following season, Ravindra Jadeja took over as captain. However, Dhoni retained the position. For the 2023 IPL auction, Dhoni sold for Rs. 12 Crore. 

While it is true that the IPL has seen many great captains over the years, they have yet to manage to stand out like MS Dhoni. He played a significant role in helping his team win several trophies during his career as a player and captain. He is considered one of the best captains in IPL history because he led his team to success while being a good leader and not just playing great cricket. So, if we talk about the most successful captains in IPL history, Dhoni is and will always be at the top. 

No. 2 – Rohit Sharma IPL Career (Mumbai Indians)

Since 2013, as a successful captain and the standout performer of the Mumbai Indians, Rohit Sharma has won five times IPL trophies in the 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020 editions. He is known as ‘Hitman’ and one of six players with 5,000 runs or more in the competition. He is widely regarded as one of the best IPL captains in history for his notable achievements. Though Sharma is an aggressive batsman, his supercool captaincy makes him unique and distinguishable from other players. The way he always lifts his team members is to look for them. For the 2023 IPL auction, Sharma sold for Rs. 16 Crore. Undoubtedly, he is one of the best batsmen in IPL history and has a maximum winning percentage rate of 60.16%. 

No. 3 – Gautam Gambhir IPL Career

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Gautam Gambhir is one of the most successful players in IPL history. He was an aggressive captain renowned for his passion and commitment to the sport. He is widely regarded as one of the best IPL captains in history for his notable achievements.

In the first auction of IPL, Gambhir was picked up by the Delhi Daredevils team for a price of US$725,000 and promoted to the team’s captain in 2010. But in the 2011 IPL auction, he was selected by the KKR team. After Gambhir led the Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL playoffs and the Champions League Twenty20 for the first time in his captaincy, the team won their first title in 2012 by defeating Chennai Super Kings. In 2014, he led KKR to the second title by defeating Kings XI Punjab. Also, in 2016 and 2017, he led the team to the playoffs. Gambhir’s reign as the KKR captain was very successful, as he led his team to victory in most of the games he captained. 

In the 2018 IPL auction, he was rebought by the Delhi Daredevils team, and in 2021, he became the mentor of the Lucknow Super Giants team. 

 No. 4 – Virat Kohli IPL Career (RCB)

Another successful captain of IPL history, Virat Kohli, captained the Royal Challengers Bangalore team from 2013 to 2021. Though under his captaincy, the team has not won any IPL title so far. Still, he is the most successful captain in IPL history, having led the RCB team to the top in most of the games he captained. He also has the best win percentage of all the captains in IPL history. 

When it comes to performance, he was weak in 2008, but in the second season of IPL, he did better. He found his success in 2015 after leading his team to the playoffs. In the 2016 IPL season, he won the Orange Cap and got the award of Valuable Player. He scored four hundred in the IPL, becoming the first player to reach the 4000-run mark. However, his performance was average from the 2017-2022 IPL season, his captaincy skill remarks in IPL history. For the 2023 IPL auction, Kohli sold for Rs. 15 Crore.

No. 5 – David Warner IPL Career

The Australian opening batsman and all-rounder Warner was the captain of the Sunrisers Hyderabad team from 2014 to 2021. He is widely regarded as one of the best IPL captains in history for his notable achievements and is the only captain in IPL history to have led a team to the top. Warner’s reign as the SRH captain was very successful, as he led his team to victory in most of the games he captained.  

The Delhi Daredevils picked up Warner in the 2009-2010 IPL season. And in 2022, he was picked by the Delhi Capitals team, and in the 2023 IPL auction, he sold for Rs. 6.25 Crore. 

Wrapping Up – Who is the Best Captain in IPL?

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has been home to some of the greatest captains in cricket history.

All five of them made an impact on their respective teams and cricket. Along with Hardik Pandya, who led Gujarat Titans and KL Rahul, there is no shortage in leadership at all in the IPL. All said and done, Dhoni emerged as the best captain in IPL, leader and human in terms of attitude, decision making and on-field performance. 

Besides these five top captains, there are many big names who struggled a lot to reach victory. Stay tuned to Fun88 to get more information on IPL matches, players list, squad details, and more!

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