Most Successful Captains in IPL History

Most Successful Captains in IPL: Over 17 seasons, many captains have led IPL franchises, but only a few have enjoyed long and successful tenures. Notable among them are MS Dhoni of the Chennai Super Kings, who has led his team to multiple titles, and Rohit Sharma of the Mumbai Indians, who has also enjoyed significant success.

Let’s look at the most successful captains in IPL history based on matches captained and win percentage:

Most Successful Captains in IPL

Rank	Player	Span	Mat	Won	Lost	W %
1	MS Dhoni (CSK/RPS)	2008-2023	226	133	91	59.37
2	Rohit Sharma (MI)	2013-2023	158	87	67	56.32
3	Virat Kohli (RCB)	2011-2023	143	66	70	48.56
4	Gautam Gambhir (DC/KKR)	2009-2018	129	71	57	55.42
5	David Warner (DC/SRH)	2013-2023	83	40	41	49.39
6	Adam Gilchrist (DC/KXIP)	2008-2013	74	35	39	47.29
7	Shreyas Iyer (DC/KKR)	2018-2022	55	27	26	50.90
8	Shane Warne (RR)	2008-2011	55	30	24	55.45
9	Virender Sehwag (DC/KXIP)	2008-2015	53	28	24	53.77
10	KL Rahul (KXIP/LSG/PBKS)	2020-2023	51	25	24	50.98
11	Sachin Tendulkar (MI)	2008-2011	51	30	21	58.82
12	Rahul Dravid (RCB/RR)	2008-2013	48	22	26	45.83
13	Kumara Sangakkara (DC/KXIP/SRH)	2010-2013	47	15	30	34.04
14	Kane Williamson (SRH)	2018-2022	46	22	23	48.91
15	Sanju Samson (RR)	2021-2023	45	22	23	48.88
16	Dinesh Karthik (DC/KKR)	2010-2020	43	21	21	50.00
17	Steve Smith (PWI/RPS/RR)	2012-2020	43	25	17	59.52
18	Yuvraj Singh (KXIP/PWI)	2008-2011	43	21	21	50.00
19	Saurav Ganguly (KKR/PWI)	2008-2012	42	17	25	40.47
20	Suresh Raina (CSK/GL)	2010-2019	34	14	18	44.11
21	George Bailey (KXIP)	2014-2015	30	14	16	46.66
22	Mahela Jayawardene (DC/Kochi/KXIP)	2010-2013	30	10	19	35.00
23	Hardik Pandya (GT)	2022-2023	31	22	9	70.96
24	Rishabh Pant (DC)	2021-2022	30	16	13	55.00
25	Ravichandran Ashwin (KXIP)	2018-2019	28	12	16	42.85
26	Faf du Plessis (RCB)	2022-2023	27	14	13	51.85
27	Anil Kumble (RCB)	2009-2010	26	15	11	57.69
28	Ajinkya Rahane (RPS/RR)	2017-2019	25	9	16	36.00
29	Eoin Morgan (KKR)	2020-2021	24	11	12	47.91
30	Shane Watson (RCB/RR)	2008-2017	24	8	13	39.13

As seen above, Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the most successful captain in the history of the Indian Premier League, having led his cricket teams (CSK and RPS) in 226 matches spanning 2008-2023. Under his captaincy, CSK/RPS have won 133 matches. Rohit Sharma comes second with 158 IPL matches captained for Mumbai Indians.

Most Successful IPL Captains by Win Percentage

Win percentage is one of the major parameters to judge a captain’s success in the IPL. The table below ranks the captains with the highest winning percentage in the IPL, considering a minimum of 20 matches as captain:

Position	Player	Mat	Overall Win %
1	Hardik Pandya (GT)	31	73.33
2	Steve Smith (PWI/RPS/RR)	43	59.52
3	MS Dhoni (CSK/RPS)	225	59.19
4	Sachin Tendulkar (MI)	51	58.82
5	Anil Kumble (RCB)	26	57.69
6	Rohit Sharma (MI)	158	56.32
7	Shane Warne (RR)	55	55.45
8	Gautam Gambhir (DC/KKR)	129	55.42
9	Rishabh Pant (DC)	30	55
10	Daniel Vettori (RCB)	22	54.54
11	Virender Sehwag (DC/KXIP)	53	53.77
12	Faf du Plessis (RCB)	27	51.85
13	KL Rahul (KXIP/LSG/PBKS)	51	50.98
14	Shreyas Iyer (DC/KKR)	55	50.9
15	Dinesh Karthik (DC/KKR)	43	50
16	Yuvraj Singh (KXIP/PWI)	43	50
17	Harbhajan Singh (MI)	20	50
18	David Warner (DC/SRH)	83	49.39
19	Kane Williamson (SRH)	46	48.91
20	Sanju Samson (RR)	45	48.88

Hardik Pandya sits atop with an incredible win record of over 73% in matches as a captain while leading debutants Gujarat Titans to the IPL trophy in 2022. MS Dhoni occupies the second spot ahead of Rohit Sharma. Virat Kohli, Gautam Gambhir, and David Warner round off the top 5 names.

Check also: IPL Teams who Qualified Most Times for Playoffs

IPL Captains with Multiple Title Wins  

Winning the IPL crown once is an enormous achievement. But only a few match-winning captains in IPL history have managed to lift the coveted trophy multiple times, and among them is MS Dhoni, the captain of Chennai Super Kings, who has an exceptional record with five IPL titles (2010, 2011, 2018, 2021, 2023).

MS Dhoni – 5 IPL titles (2010, 2011, 2018, 2021, 2023) 
Rohit Sharma – 5 IPL titles (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2020)
Gautam Gambhir – 2 IPL titles (2012, 2014)  

Dhoni captained one of the teams with the best cricketers, CSK, to glory in 2010, 2011, and then again in 2018 after serving a 2-year suspension. Under his sharp leadership, the Super Kings, who spend crores every IPL auction, once again emerged IPL champions in 2021 and 2023 – proving that Dhoni is the most successful IPL captain.

A good captain can take over and transform a team into champions, as seen when Rohit Sharma took over Mumbai Indians’ captaincy in 2013, leading them to five trophy wins.

When it comes to bowling in the IPL, economy rate plays a crucial role, and some bowlers have stood out as the most economical in IPL history. On the other hand, a poor captain will waste opportunities, emphasising the impact that good and bad captains can have on a team. Kolkata Knight Riders won their IPL titles in 2012 and 2014 under the captaincy of the dynamic Gautam Gambhir, showcasing the influence a captain can have on the team’s success.

Key Stats

* Over 16 IPL seasons, MS Dhoni has led his teams (CSK & RPS) in a record 226 matches.
* Dhoni also has the second-best win percentage (59.19%) after Hardik Pandya.
* Rohit Sharma is the second most capped IPL captain with 158 matches.
* Dhoni, Rohit and Gambhir are the only captains to win the IPL more than once.  
* Dhoni holds the record for the most IPL title wins (5) as a captain.

Clearly, MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma stand out as the most successful captains in IPL history through their consistency, longevity and multiple trophy wins. The 2024 IPL season is underway, and it will be interesting to see if these records are challenged by a new breed of superstar captains like Hardik Pandya and Shreyas Iyer.