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If there is one sport, where the role of the captain is imperative then it is Cricket. Very famous team sports like football and basketball have captains in designatory roles and Davis Cup teams in Tennis have had non-playing captains. From strategizing against opponents to controlling his fielders, the captain is pro-active during every happening of the game.
When the Indian Premier League was started in 2008, the role of captain became even more important because of the short duration of the tournament. Moreover, with the squad comprising of a new set of players from different countries, the captain has to be spot on with his team changes.
Captains with a prolonged stint in that position have been successful in the tournament. Mahendra Singh Dhoni is one such example who has led Chennai Super Kings to the knockout of every season they have played. Let us look at the list of players who have been captain of IPL franchises.
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#8 Sunrisers Hyderabad
Captains: Kumar Sangakkara - 2013
Cameron White - 2013
Shikhar Dhawan - 2014
Darren Sammy - 2014
David Warner - 2015 - 2017
Kane Williamson - 2018
Sunrisers Hyderabad was formed in 2013 after Deccan Chargers were dissolved in 2012 after financial issues. Kumar Sangakkara was appointed the captain of the team for their inaugural season in 2013. Although the team did well, he couldn't contribute much as a batsman. Hence he dropped himself and appointed Cameron White as Captain of the team.
Before the big auction in 2014, Sunrisers retained Dale Steyn and Shikhar Dhawan, as he was appointed as captain for the new season. But the burden of captaincy affected the south-paw as runs dried up from his bat. Darren Sammy was elevated to the role of captaincy in the later stages of the tournament.
In 2015, Australian David Warner was appointed as captain and he led them to their first title in 2016. His ban due to sandpaper gate, he was barred from participating in the 2018 season. Kane Williamson replaced Warner and led a successful campaign only to lose to Chennai in the finals in 2018.
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#7 Royal Challengers Bangalore
Captains: Rahul Dravid - 2008
Kevin Pietersen - 2009
Anil Kumble - 2009 - 2010
Daniel Vettori - 2011 - 2012
Virat Kohli - 2013 - 2018
Shane Watson - 2017
Rahul Dravid was announced as the captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore as he was the icon player of the franchise in the inaugural edition. After finishing second last, RCB bid aggressively for Kevin Pietersen in 2009 auctions and made him the captain.
Kevin left the tournament midway due to national duties and former India captain Anil Kumble took over the reins of captaincy. Kumble led the team to the finals in the 2009 season and to the semi-finals in the 2010 season.
As big guns retired, RCB acquired the services of Daniel Vettori and appointed him as captain for 2011. Virat Kohli took over the captaincy in 2013 and have been leading the side since then. Shane Watson captained the side when Kohli was sidelined due to a shoulder injury in the initial phase of 2017.
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#6 Rajasthan Royals
Captains: Shane Warne - 2008 - 2011
Shane Watson - 2008 - 2015
Rahul Dravid - 2012 - 2013
Steve Smith - 2015
Ajinkya Rahane - 2018
Going into the inaugural edition of IPL, Rajasthan Royals was least expected to do well as they were void of big stars. But one man was their captain, coach and the biggest star and it was Shane Warne. He led from the front and beat all the odds to win the title.
Shane Warne was part of the team till 2011 and when he retired another senior statesman in the form of Rahul Dravid took over the captaincy in 2012. He led the young team very well and gave the batton to Shane Watson who was with the team since 2008.
Watson did captain a few games when Warne was injured and took over the full-time captaincy in 2014. Steve Smith captained the side in 2015 and hence was promoted in 2018 but the sandpaper gate prevented him from playing in the IPL. As a result, Ajinkya Rahane was appointed as the captain.
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#5 Mumbai Indians
Captains: Sachin Tendulkar - 2008 - 2011
Harbhajan Singh - 2008 - 2012
Shaun Pollock - 2008
Dwayne Bravo - 2010
Ricky Ponting - 2013
Rohit Sharma - 2013 - 2018
Sachin Tendulkar returned to the captaincy fold as he took the reins of Mumbai Indians in 2008. But an untimely injury resulted in him giving a miss to few matches and Harbhajan was asked to captain the side. The slap gate controversy with Sreesanth prevented him from captaining the side and Shaun Pollock led the side until Tendulkar came back. Dwayne Bravo captained the same in a solo game in 2010.
Harbhajan Singh came back as captain in 2012, after leading the team to a Champions League title. Mumbai bid and bought Ricky Ponting in 2013 just to captain the side. But he dropped himself after six games and appointed Rohit Sharma as the captain.
The move reaped great rewards as Mumbai won their first title in 2013. He led Mumbai to titles in 2015 and 2017 as well.
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#4 Kolkata Knight Riders
Captains: Sourav Ganguly - 2008 - 2010
Brendon McCullum - 2009
Gautam Gambhir - 2011 - 2017
Dinesh Karthik - 2018
Kolkata Knight Riders was one of the most celebrated teams when IPL was started in 2008. Not only it was owned by one of the most popular celebrity, but also saw the return of captain Ganguly. KKR announced that the team will have multiple captains in 2009, but Brendon McCullum captained them for the entire season.
Ganguly came back to captain in 2010. In 2011 the team management spent more than one-fourth of their purse and bought Gautam Gambhir. He captained the team from 2011 to 2017. KKR qualified for the playoffs for the first time under his captaincy in 2011.
He went one step ahead in 2012 and led them to their first title in 2012. KKR went onto win their second title in 2014. The team management surprised everyone by appointing Dinesh Karthik as captain in 2018. He led the team brilliantly despite injury concerns & deprival of resources.
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#3 Kings XI Punjab
Captains: Yuvraj Singh - 2008 - 2009
Kumar Sangakkara - 2010
Mahela Jayawardena - 2010
Adam Gilchrist - 2011 - 2013
David Hussey - 2012 - 2013
George Bailey - 2014 - 2015
Virender Sehwag - 2015
David Miller - 2016
Murali Vijay - 2016
Glenn Maxwell - 2017
Ravichandran Ashwin - 2018
Kings XI Punjab is the team with most captains in IPL history. They have had 11 captains in 11 seasons of IPL. Yuvraj Singh with the icon player status was the captain for first two seasons. Mahela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara captained in 2010.
Adam Gilchrist then led the franchise from 2011 - 2013. After failing to make a big impact in any of the seasons, the management went to buy impact players in 2014 auctions. Australian George Bailey led the team to finals in 2014.
But they are in a downfall post that as players like David Miller, Murali Vijay and Glenn Maxwell in parts but couldn't change the fortunes. Ravichandran Ashwin was asked to captain the side in 2018.
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#2 Delhi Daredevils/ Delhi Capitals
Captains: Virender Sehwag - 2008 - 2012
Gautam Gambhir - 2010 & 2018
Mahela Jayawardena - 2010 - 2013
Dinesh Karthik - 2010
James Hopes - 2011
David Warner - 2013 - 2014
Kevin Pietersen - 2014
Jean-Paul Duminy - 2015
Zaheer Khan - 2016 - 2017
Shreyas Iyer - 2018
Delhi Daredevils is another franchise which has failed to deliver despite boasting some of the biggest names in cricket. Virender Sehwag captained the side in 2008, 2009 & 2012 when they qualified for the playoffs.
Injury concerns for their talisman made multiple captains in the form of Dinesh Karthik in 2010, James Hopes in 2011, Mahela Jayawardena & David Warner in 2013, Kevin Pietersen in 2014 and JP Duminy in 2015. But this couldn't change the fortunes of the team.
Zaheer Khan led a young side in 2016 & 2017. Gambhir was again brought back to the team to lead them in 2018. But lack of runs made him drop himself and appointed Shreyas Iyer as the captain. He relished the role and performed well in the second half of the tournament.
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#1 Chennai Super Kings
Captains: Mahendra Singh Dhoni - 2008 - 2018
Suresh Raina - 2010
If there is one team that has dominated in the IPL, then it is Chennai Super Kings. If there is one player who has been a cornerstone then it is captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Barring three matches in 2010, Dhoni has led CSK in every game they have played in the IPL.
It was his captaincy that helped CSK win their first title in 2010. Throughout the tournament, Ashwin bowled his full quota of four overs in the first 10 overs. But in the finals, he bowled only three and he came back to bowl the fourth when third season's emerging player Saurabh Tiwary came into bat. He holed out to midwicket as Dhoni placed team's best fielder Raina who responded with a moment of brilliance.
And when Kieron Pollard was threatening to take the game away, it was his field Placings that took CSK to their title. A decade later it was Dhoni again who led CSK to their third title in 2018.
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