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The reason why some of the IPL (Indian Premier League) franchises look beyond the home country for astute leaders is because some of the stalwarts of Indian cricket have not stamped as much authority as captain as they have as players.
That is perhaps evident in a handful of Indian players who have captained IPL teams but have never done so for the national side. On that note, let us have a look at five such players.
Five Indian players who have captained IPL sides but not the Indian team:
#1: Dinesh Karthik
Picked from the IPL auction ahead of the 2018 edition of the competition just to captain the side, Dinesh Karthik made his mark in just his first season in charge of the Kolkata Knight Riders.
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Karthik drew rich accolades from all quarters for the manner in which he rallied the IPL team together and led by example. The Tamil Nadu star frequently running all the way up to the bowler’s mark to give some words of advice reminded everyone of a certain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Not only did he help KKR finish third in the IPL table that season, he also ended the tournament with 498 runs at an average of 49.8, ahead of the likes of Suresh Raina and AB de Villiers. Mind you, he was playing as a finisher, but he aced that role.
His exploits earned him a callup to the national side where his 23 off 8 balls won India the Nidahas Trophy, something that will be etched in the memories of Indian fans for a long time.
In his second IPL season as captain, however, the returns tailed off for Karthik in terms of both captaincy and individual performances as KKR failed to make the playoffs after winning only six of their 14 games.
Karthik, nevertheless, enjoys a win percentage of 48.61 as a captain in the IPL. He has led KKR on 30 occasions and the Delhi Daredevils (now called Delhi Capitals) in six matches back in 2010.
#2: Yuvraj Singh
The camaraderie between the Kings XI Punjab owner and captain Yuvraj Singh was for everyone to see in the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008.
Home lad Yuvraj Singh was the face of IPL team Kings XI Punjab in the first two editions of the competition. The lefthander responded to the added responsibility impressively by leading the Preity Zinta-owned franchise to second in IPL 2008. Kings XI won ten of their 14 league games before getting knocked out in the semifinals.
Yuvraj Singh tallied a 'meagre' 253 runs in that season, but it was a decent return for a side who wouldn't reach the IPL playoffs in the next six seasons. In IPL 2009, Yuvraj Singh could not make merry with the bat as the Kings XI Punjab finished fifth in the table. Singh was then replaced by Mahela Jayawardene for the next season of the IPL.
Yuvraj Singh, however, was back as captain – this time for the Pune Warriors India in IPL 2011. But he failed to inspire the new IPL team who finished ninth after registering just four wins in 14 matches.
Nevertheless, in 43 IPL games as a captain, Yuvraj Singh enjoyed a win percentage of 50.
#3: Ravichandran Ashwin
Much like Dinesh Karthik, Ravichandran Ashwin too was picked ahead of the 2018 IPL to captain Kings XI Punjab. However, the decision didn't bear fruit as the IPL team finished sixth in that season of the competition.
Ashwin’s performance dipped considerably as he scalped just ten wickets at an economy rate of 8.09 that season while he experimented a lot of variations, including bowling leg spin. He fared well in the next IPL season, taking 15 wickets, but his side again finished sixth.
Overall, Ashwin has captained the Punjab side 28 times and has a win rate of 42.85%.
#4: Zaheer Khan
The fans didn’t know whether to celebrate or worry when the Delhi Daredevils appointed Zaheer Khan as their captain ahead of the 2016 edition of the IPL.
The franchise finished sixth in both the 2016 and 2017 editions of the competition as an ageing Zaheer Khan led from the front but, unlike old times, couldn’t let the ball do the talking.
He picked up a mere 20 wickets in the two seasons at the helm, garnering a win percentage of 43.47.
#5: Shreyas Iyer
Captaincy has always been an issue for the Delhi franchise. Shreyas Iyer was suddenly pushed to the captaincy role when then captain Gautam Gambhir suddenly quit in the middle of the IPL 2018 season owing to poor results and his own underwhelming form.
Even though the side finished last in the IPL table that season, the only positive was that the 23-year-old Iyer scored an impressive 411 runs at an average of 37.66.
The tables drastically turned for the better in the next IPL season after a change in the IPL franchise's management.
Shreyas Iyer once again led from the front as Delhi Capitals made the IPL playoffs for the first time in six seasons. In the process, he finished as the ninth-highest run-getter that season, scoring 498 runs.
Iyer has won 13 of 24 games as an IPL captain, boasting a win ratio of 56.25%. In fact, he is the only player in this list who still has the prospect of captaining India in the years to come.
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