Top 5 all time skippers in the Indian Premier League

Top 5 all time skippers in the Indian Premier League: Captaincy in T20 matches is a job of pressure and a player’s nerves are tested to the fullest possible extent. Captains have to make important decisions during the course of the game. Sometimes they bring glories whereas it brings defeats at other times. But this constitutes the game and is an integral part. The extent to which a captain is able to foresee situations and make decisions according to that makes him prone to success. But isn’t a precise foresight a rare attribute? It requires ample amount of experience, calmness coupled with strategic intelligence. This article emphasizes upon the Top 5 all time skippers in Indian Premier League . Let us dig deep into it. 1. Mahendra Singh Dhoni (CSK): MS Dhoni CSK. (Photo Source: BCCI) MS Dhoni has been one of the most innovative captains in the game and he knows how to extract the best out of his players which makes him the best. Dhoni implements certain unorthodox, peculiar strategies, an instance of which being his reliability upon his squad. In every season of the IPL, CSK is the only team that makes the least number of changes in their playing XI. Also, Dhoni anticipates situations really well which makes him an even better captain. Let us put light over an instant here. In IPL 2010 final, when Pollard came into the crease to bat, he had to be dismissed early else he could have changed the course of the game. The CSK skipper called in a fielder between mid-off and mid-on, and eventually Pollard gave a catch to that particular fielder and was dismissed the very next ball. Sourav Ganguly has also suggested that Dhoni should write a book on fielding positions after his retirement. CSK has been the most consistent team and has won the trophy twice. And they were the runners up on 3 occasions. 2. Gautam Gambhir (DD, KKR): Gautam Gambhir KKR. (Photo Source: BCCI) GG has been quite successful as a captain since he joined KKR back in the fourth season of IPL. He possesses the great capability of using up his resources quite efficiently and in the process, they become much more effective. The way he used Narine in the past few seasons was simply brilliant. Also, he has the quality of never giving up. Even if his team is on the verge of an inevitable defeat, Gambhir is never ready to accept defeat. He leads his team right from the front and his aggressive mentality on the field makes him successful. On a lighter note, his superstitious notions (of not opening the pads until the innings is concluded) also brings him decent amount of success! Under his leadership, KKR has been at its consistent best and they have won the IPL twice in the gap of two years. He also briefly led the Delhi Daredevils side, but could not leave an impact. 3. Shane Warne (RR): Shane Warne RR. (Photo Source: BCCI) In 2008, Rajasthan Royals lost each of their 4 opening games on the trot. But there was this unseen turnaround in the later part of the tournament, and RR was crowned the first IPL Champions. This sums up the strength of Shane Warne’s captaincy to a great extent. He used to put behind huge faith in the uncapped players and they shone under his leadership. Players like Ravindra Jadeja, Yusuf Pathan and several others played like champions. Warne injected confidence and self-belief among the youngsters and they played brilliantly and rose up to the occasions. With a comparatively weaker side on paper, RR posed severe threat to the opposition. 4. Adam Gilchrist (DC, KXIP): Adam Gilchrist KXIP. (Photo Source:AFP) Adam Gilchrist was appointed as the captain of the Deccan Chargers in 2008 after VVS Laxman failed in leading the side. From being last ranked team in 2008, Deccan Chargers emerged to be the champions in 2009. Gilchrist maintained his troops decently well. His field placements were also up to the task. He kept on encouraging his young bowlers from behind the stumps. Gilly was bought by Kings XI Punjab franchise in 2011 and he captained the Punjab side and a side full of young and inexperienced talents played incredibly well. Players like Mandeep Singh, Manan Vohra, Gurkeraat Singh and others got huge support from the captain and the team played brilliantly as a unit. Gilchrist seemed to have framed a strong bonding in the team which helped the players understand each other and they complimented each other’s performances, which in the broader view contributed to the team’s success. 5. Rohit Sharma (RR): Rohit Sharma MI. (Photo Source: BCCI) If a youngster is given the responsibility to captain a side full of stars in the likes of Lasith Malinga, Harbhajan Singh, Kieron Pollard, Ricky Ponting and the master blaster Sachin Tendulkar, chances are high that he might fail. But Rohit Sharma emerged as an exception. He took over captaincy of the Mumbai Indians from Sachin and handled the immense resources of the time in a brilliant fashion. Under his leadership, MI won the IPL in 2013 and also won the Champions League T20 in the same year. He has a positive attitude towards the game and is always hopeful for the best to happen. Last year, Mumbai lost their first five encounters yet the team went onto qualify for the play-offs. Rohit Sharma has managed the international players alongside the domestic players quite well and succeeded in maintaining a perfect balance in the team. After a poor start in this year’s IPL, MI seems to be getting back on track with four consecutive victories.