The prestigious position of captain of the Indian National Cricket Team accompanies great responsibility that only the chosen ones can handle. While only playing as a team often seems hard, heading the troop keeps them motivated and constantly pushing their potential to give 100%. The Indian cricket captain needs to be persistent, bold, and have immense skills.
Starting from planning a winning strategy, encouraging the men in blue, and taking full responsibility for every event, Indian cricket captains proved themselves time and again.
Following are the most successful Indian cricket captains in the game’s history.
1. Virat Kohli
As Virat Kohli stepped down as captain from all formats of cricket, his seven years of captaincy came to an end. However, what makes him one of the most successful cricket captains of India and the world is his 40 Test wins in 68 matches.
Statistically, it is the highest number of Test caps a player has in the history of India’s cricket captaincy. After taking the reins from Dhoni during the Test Series in Australia (2014), he grew immensely as a player. Virat contributed to securing India the top spot of ICC Test Ranking from October 2016 to March 2020.
2. MS Dhoni
One of MS Dhoni’s immense successes as Indian cricket captain is his ability to remain calm and composed even during sticky situations. This is why he is popularly known as Captain Cool.
Under his captaincy, the Indian cricket team won the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 (2007). In 2011 also India won the ICC Cricket World Cup under his captaincy after 28 years, making him a successful Indian cricket captain.
3. Saurav Ganguly
Our ‘Dada’ Saurav Ganguly makes one of the most successful captains of the Indian cricket team primarily due to his innate leadership quality. He could spot talents easily and knew how to bring the best of his teammates.
One of the best achievements of Saurav Ganguly as captain was to lead India to the finals of the 2003 World Cup. Also, how can we forget that epic moment of shirt wave from Lord’s balcony in 2002 during the England vs. India match in Natwest Trophy Final!
4. Kapil Dev
India’s first-ever victory in World Cup in 1983 came under the captaincy of Kapil Dev. After winning the first ODI series as captain, Kapil Dev encouraged the team to face West Indies in 1983 final.
He also made records by scoring 126 runs on the 9th wicket and broke the record after 27 years! The winning streak of the Indian cricket team continued when he was again reappointed as captain in 1985. The team won the series against England in 1986 under his guidance only.
Although Kapil Dev was captain of the Indian cricket team for a shorter period, he had an impressive success record.
Who do you think are India’s most successful cricket captains, and why? Let us know in the comment section!
