Top 10 Captains with highest ODI average

4. Graeme Smith – 38.96 (150 matches):

The South African batsman with a somewhat debatable stance, he is widely considered as one of the greatest ever captains to have graced the game. When he was appointed as a captain as a 23-year-old player, many eyebrows were raised with regards to this decision. But fast forward 10 years, he built a team which can give competition to any team on any surface. His performance with the bat shows his true leadership qualities, averaging about 38.96 in 147 innings he played as a captain. While everyone remembers Gibbs’ epic 175 in that chase against Australia, it was Smith’s 90 of just 55 balls which gave the right start for the South African batsmen. That innings aptly sums up Smith’s role as a captain of the team. While he has never hogged the limelight, he steps up when the team needed him the most. He has scored about 8 hundreds and 37 fifties in 147 innings he has played, averaging about a 50+ score in every 3.5 innings.