Captains of Indian Teams at Cricket World Cup (1975 Onwards)

Captains of Indian Teams at Cricket World Cup
The most successful Indian cricket captains in the World Cup are Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Kapil Dev.
List of Indian Cricket Captains at the World Cup Since 1975
Infographic Showing Captains of Indian Teams at Cricket World Cup (1975 Onwards)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One-Day International (ODI) cricket game started on January 5, 1971. The first official game in this format was played at Melbourne Cricket Ground between Australia and England after abandonment of the test match due to heavy downpour. The game (with each side batting for 40 overs and each over having 8 balls) was won by Australia by 5 wickets.

India played its first ever ODI cricket match on July 13, 1974 against England at Headingley (Leeds, England). Ajit Wadekar led the Indian cricket team as the first ODI captain in 2 games (India lost both games). First ODI cricket world cup was played in 1975, where the Indian cricket team was led by Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan.

The name “ICC World Cup” was adopted from the 1999 World Cup. Earlier World Cups were named after the sponsors. Accordingly, the names were: 1975, 1979 and 1983 – Prudential World Cup, 1987 – Reliance World Cup, 1992 – Benson & Hedges World Cup, and 1996 – Wills World Cup.

Till now, there have been 6 captains who led India since 1975. The most successful Indian cricket captains in the World Cup are Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Kapil Dev. However, the current Indian captain Virat Kohli has a 78% winning track record in ODIs, and the entire nation is now watching and hoping for Team India to repeat its feat of 1983 and 2011 World Cups.

Now, let’s check the list of Indian Cricket Captains at the World Cup since 1975:

1. Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan

Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan (popularly known as Venkat) led the Indian cricket team in the first two international cricket World Cups (1975 and 1979). He made international ODI debut on July 13, 1974 (against England). This world-class spinner played his last ODI game on April 7, 1983. Venkat went on to become a leading cricket umpire (enlisted on the elite International Cricket Council Test panel).

Duration of Captaincy Matches Played Won Lost Stage Reached
 1975 3 1 2  Group Stage
 1979 3 0 3  Group Stage

2. Kapil Dev

Kapil Dev, the Indian Cricketer of the Century in 2002, was a renowned all-rounder. He is the only player in the cricketing history to take over 400 wickets and also score over 5,000 runs in Tests. In the ODIs, Kapil Dev was the first player ever to take more than 200 wickets. He captained Indian cricket team to win the 1983 World Cup. Kapil Dev Ram Lal Nikhanj was included in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame on March 11, 2010.

Duration of Captaincy Matches Played Won Lost Stage Reached
1983 8 6 2 Final Winner
1987 7 5 2 Semifinals

3. Mohammad Azharuddin

He was one of the most elegant middle-order batsmen India has ever produced. Azharuddin played 47 tests and 174 ODI matches for India. He is one of the most successful Indian cricket captains after MS Dhoni and Sourav Ganguly.

Duration of Captaincy Matches Played Won Lost Stage Reached
1992 8 2 5 Round Robin
1996 7 4 3 Semifinals
1999 8 4 4 Super Six

4. Sourav Ganguly

Sourav Chandidas Ganguly (affectionately called “Dada”) is one of the most successful Indian cricket captains of all time. He will always be remembered for bringing the entire squad together and infusing an element of aggression in the team. Sourav Ganguly, the elegant stroke player on the off side, was called God of the Off Side by Rahul Dravid. He was ranked 6th greatest ODI batsman of all time by the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanac in 2002.

Duration of Captaincy Matches Played Won Lost Stage Reached
2003 11 9 2 Runner up

5. Rahul Dravid

Rahul Sharad Dravid (also called “The Wall” or “Jammy”) was handed over the captaincy of ODI team at a time during the infamous power-tussle between the then coach Greg Chappel and skipper Sourav Ganguly. Though Dravid was labeled as the stooge of Greg, “The Wall” managed his captaincy period with decent success in ODIs. Also called Mr. Dependable, Rahul Dravid helped India win many matches and scored around 25,000 runs in international cricket (ODIs and Tests). However, he did not prove to be successful at the World Cup 2007.

Duration of Captaincy Matches Played Won Lost Stage Reached
2007 3 1 2 Group Stage

6. Mahendra Singh Dhoni

Mahendra Singh Dhoni (called MS Dhoni by the media and popularly known as “Mahi”) is till date the most successful captain of Indian cricket team. Dhoni is known for his cool-headed decision-making capabilities, thereby earning him the name “Captain Cool”. He led Team India in 2011 and 2015 World Cups. While India won the World Cup in 2011, it reached the Semi-finals in 2015. MS Dhoni is known for his game wining capabilities and is regarded as one of the best wicket-keepers of the world.

Duration of Captaincy Matches Played Won Lost Stage Reached
2011 9 7 1 Final Winners
2015 8 7 1 Semifinals

7. Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli, the Young Turk leading Team India, is not only an aggressive right-handed top-order batsman but also the current captain of the Indian squad. He has already scored 10,000 runs before reaching 30 years of age. The best thing about him is that he has proved his mettle in India as well as abroad. Kohli is all set to lead the Indian Cricket Team in 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, commencing on May 30, 2019. He has captained 65 ODI games till now, winning 49 and losing 14. Accordingly, his success rate is 78% in ODIs.

Related Links:

Indian Squad For Cricket World Cup 2019

ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Schedule