Captains are extremely significant in the game of cricket & for leading the squad to victory, here are the Top 10 popular cricket captains.
Top 10 Popular Cricket Captains In The World.
“Any captain can only do his best for the team and for cricket. When you are winning, you are a hero. Lose, and the backslappers fade away.”
These words by Richie Benaud one of the greatest voices of cricket highlights the hard life of captains in the world of cricket, there are under constant scrutiny.
And while they are praised for team’s success there are often brutally criticized if the team losses or even if there are other issues within the team, like team combination, on and off-field decisions.
Thus, a successful captain is one who confidently handles pressure and who can stay true to his vision even though the public perception and demands keep changing continuously.
With success comes, popularity and cricket have seen some very popular captains, who have reached the pinnacle of popularity because of their leadership qualities and their overall charisma and vision.
Check out the top 10 popular cricket captains in the world :
1. Steve Waugh – Australia
Steve Waugh, regarded as cricket’s most composed captain, led Australia from 1997 to 2002. In 1999, he guided the Australian cricket team to victory in the World Cup.
- Tests winning percentage: 65.23%
- ODIs winning percentage: 72%
- Overall winning percentage: 68.6%
He captained the side for a total of 106 One-Day Internationals, winning 67 and losing 35, for a winning percentage of 65.23 percent. Only the third player in ICC Hall of Fame history to reach 10,000 Test runs.
Waugh made history by being the first Australian to lift the World Cup twice, alongside Tom Moody.
2. Ricky Ponting – Australia
Ricky Ponting led Australia to a world-record 230 One-Day International victories, with a winning rate of 76.14.
- Tests winning percentage: 62.33%
- ODIs winning percentage: 76.14%
- Overall winning percentage: 67.9%
In one-day internationals, he is most known for winning back-to-back World Cups in 2003 and 2007. Ponting, one of the best cricketers of all time, led the team from 2002 to 2012.
He guided Australia to a whopping 220 wins during his time as captain.
He claimed 48 Test matches, second only to Graeme Smith (53), despite leading 32 times less.
3. MS Dhoni – India
Captain-cool MS Dhoni is the only captain to have won the ODI World Cup, the World T20 Championship, and the ICC Champions Trophy. These victories confirm his status as one of the greatest limited-overs captains of all time.
- Tests winning percentage: 45%
- ODIs winning percentage: 59.52%
- Overall winning percentage: 52.3%
The fact that he earned these titles with a weaker bowling team adds to the brilliance of his victories.
When fielding or hitting, he was a brilliant tactician and communicator for his teammates. However, he was unable to translate his limited-overs performance to Test conditions in other countries.
Under his captaincy, India played 60 test matches and won with a 45.00 win Percentage and 200 ODI matches and 110 wins, 74 losses with a 59.52 win percentage.
Dhoni claims third place in our list of the top 10 most successful captains in cricket history.
4. Clive Lloyd – West Indies
Clive Lloyd was the captain of the West Indies squad that dominated cricket around the world in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In 1975 and 1979, he guided the West Indies to World Cup victories.
- Tests winning percentage: 48.6%
- ODIs winning percentage: 77.7%
- Overall winning percentage: 63.1%
He led from the front in the 1975 edition’s final, smashing an 85-ball 102.
Clive also guided them to the 1983 World Cup final, where they lost to India and finished second.
He had the highest winning rate in One-Day Internationals (77.71). (with a minimum of 30 ODIs). While he does not have the same success in Tests, he just loses 16.21% of them, which is third-best behind Steve Waugh (minimum of 30 Tests).
5. Hansie Cronje – South Africa
Hansie Cronje, the former Proteas captain, may have been disqualified from cricket for life due to match-fixing scandals, but he was named the 11th best South African two years after his death in a plane crash in 2002.
- Tests winning percentage: 50.9%
- ODIs winning percentage: 73.7%
- Overall winning percentage: 65.96%
In 1995, he took over as captain from Kepler and guided the South African squad in the 1996 World Cup.
About the fact that he was unable to lead his team to success by capturing any ICC trophies, he is considered one of the top ten cricket captains of all time.
In his 53 test matches, he has 23 victories and just 11 defeats. He led his team to 99 ODI victories, a winning rate of 73.7 percent.
6. Graeme Smith – South Africa
Ex-South African cricketer Graeme Smith is a left-handed batsman and sporadic off-break bowler.
- Tests winning percentage: 48.62%
- ODIs winning percentage: 64.23%
- Overall winning percentage: 56.99%
Between 2002 and 2014, he played for the team in all forms of cricket and was named captain a year into his career, a position he held until the end. South Africa contested 286 matches under his guidance, winning 163 of them.
He had a win rate of 56.99 for his national team, rendering him one of his country’s most notable captains. He also has the most Test victories in the world, with 53.
7. Imran Khan – Pakistan
Pakistan’s current Prime Minister had a successful cricketing career and is generally regarded as the country’s most prolific cricket captain.
- Tests winning Percentage: 63.63%
- ODIs winning Percentage: 59.9%
- Overall Winning Percentage: 61.7%
He is also considered one of the greatest all-rounders in the history of the glorious game of cricket. In 1982, he took over as captain from Javed Miandad.
Imran Khan captained Pakistan in 48 Test matches, 14 of which were won, 8 of which were lost, and the other 26 were drawn. In one-day internationals, 75 was won out of 139, he has a victory rate of 55.92 percent.
When he guided Pakistan to their first World Cup win in 1992, he was unquestionably a national hero.
8. Virat Kohli – India
As MS Dhoni declared his retirement halfway through the 2014 away Australian series, Virat Kohli was forced to step in as Test captain.
- Tests winning percentage: 60.7%
- ODIs winning percentage: 75%
- Overall winning percentage: 67.85%
Kohli has had a good start to his captaincy, with 30 victories in his first 50 Tests, second only to Steve Waugh (37) and Ricky Ponting (35).
The new Indian captain’s ODI record is equally impressive, with 58 victories in 80 games for a win percentage of 75 percent.
Kohli has scored 4956 runs at an impressive pace of 64.36, including 19 hundred, making him one of the greatest batsmen of his generation.
9. Viv Richards – West Indies
Sir Viv Richards, one of the best batsmen in cricket history, captained the West Indies from 1984 to 1991.
- Tests winning percentage: 54%
- ODIs winning percentage: 65%
- Overall winning percentage: 59.5%
He succeeded 27 of 50 Test matches as captain and just lost 8.
He is the only captain in the history of the West Indies who’s never defeated in a test series. After the great Clive Lloyd declared his retirement in 1985, Richards took over as captain.
Richards’ record as captain is second only to Steve Waugh’s and Ricky Ponting’s for captains who have led in at least 50 Tests, with a win rate of 54 percent.
10. Michael Clark – Australia
Michael Clarke did not get the same level of international publicity as his successors Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting. It’s possible that it’s because his Test figures as a captain weren’t as impressive as theirs.
- Tests winning percentage: 51.06%
- ODIs inning percentage: 70.4%
- Overall winning percentage: 60.7%
His ODI figures (70.42 win percentage) are, nevertheless, higher than Waugh’s (65.23).
In 2015, he, like Waugh, captured a World Cup for Australia. Clarke was also the highest scorer for Australia in the 2015 World Cup final (74 off 72 balls).
As he was in control, the right-hander lead from the center, averaging 51.92 in Tests and 45.75 in ODIs.
Clarke surely deserves to be on our list of the top 10 most successful captains in cricket history.