When the IPL began in 2008, veterans of the sport such as Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Shane Warne, Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Adam Gilchrist etc. were the captains of their respective franchises. MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh, relatively younger in both experience and age, were also the skippers of their teams.
The final of the inaugural season of IPL in 2008 pitted Rajasthan Royals (RR) against Chennai Super Kings (CSK). RR were led by Shane Warne, one of the greatest players of all-time, while CSK were led by MS Dhoni, who, in contrast, had less than a year of leadership experience, although he guided India to glory in the 2007 ICC World Twenty20.
Over the years, many captains have gained recognition for their style of captaincy. Deccan Chargers (DC), who finished bottom of the IPL table in 2008, went on to win the trophy in 2009, thanks to Adam Gilchrist’s tactical acumen.
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Gautam Gambhir, who was bought by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2011, helped them win the IPL twice, in 2012 and 2014, and was praised for his leadership.
But who is the greatest IPL captain? Let’s find out.
The best captains in IPL history
Although there have been as many as 15 different teams to play in the IPL, with 10 of those playing currently, no franchise has come close to the success that Mumbai Indians (MI) and Chennai Super Kings have achieved.
These two sides are the two most successful teams in IPL history, with MI winning the title a record five times and CSK just one short of MI’s tally.
Therefore, one would assume that the captains leading these two teams would be the best captains.
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Yes, that’s the case.
Rohit Sharma, leading MI since the 2013 season, has guided his team to all five titles. However, it is MS Dhoni, considered to be arguably the greatest captain in cricket history, who takes the title of the best IPL captain.
Not only does MSD have more wins as captain than Rohit (128 compare to 82), but also a higher win percentage (58.71% compared to 56.00%).
The table below shows the stats of the five best captains in IPL history in order.
| Player | Teams captained | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | No result | Win percentage | IPL titles won |
| MS Dhoni | CSK, RPS | 219 | 128 | 90 | 0 | 1 | 58.71% | 4 |
| Rohit Sharma | MI | 150 | 82 | 64 | 4 | 0 | 56.00% | 5 |
| Virat Kohli | RCB | 143 | 66 | 70 | 3 | 4 | 48.56% | 0 |
| Gautam Gambhir | DC, KKR | 129 | 71 | 57 | 1 | 0 | 55.42% | 2 |
| David Warner | DC, SRH | 77 | 37 | 38 | 2 | 0 | 49.35% | 1 |
