Captains are often taken for granted in the sport of cricket; from deciding who bowls which over to sending out batters in the right order, captains make match-changing decisions during the course of a game. Out of a long list of captains appointed by their respective country’s board over the years, only a few have gone on to become successful in their tenure. Following is a list of the top five best captains of all time in the world of men’s cricket.
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Steve Waugh
Arguably Australia’s most composed captain, Steve Waugh started his reign in 1999-00, embarking on Australia’s dominance in world cricket. He captained 163 matches for Australia between 1999 and 2004. He holds the highest win record percentage in Test cricket history, of 71.92%, winning 41 matches out of 57. Under his captaincy, the Aussies won 16 consecutive Test matches, including the famous 5-0 victory over the West Indies.
In 1999, the Australian team captained by Waugh clinched their second ICC World Cup. The team had a slow start, holding off Scotland and advancing to the next rounds. Waugh pulled Australia out from under the jaws of South Africa, playing his famous innings of 120* in the Super Sixes knockout round. Finally, the team had a comfortable victory over Pakistan to lift the trophy.
In the cabinet of individual achievements, Waugh is only the second male cricketer to lift two World Cups. He scored over 10,000 runs in Test cricket, some of them coming in a very memorable innings in which he scored 157* in the fifth Test of The Ashes of 2001. Ignoring all medical advice, Waugh played this unbelievable knock limping on one leg. All of the above makes him a great contender for the best captain in the world.
Ricky Ponting
Known as the best captain in the game’s history, Ricky ‘Punter’ Ponting captained Australia from 2004 to 2011. It was never going to be easy taking over the reins from Steve Waugh, but Ponting embraced the challenge and graciously overtook most of Waugh’s records.
Ponting has a staggering win record of 67% as an Australia captain, having won 220 matches out of 324. He won 48 Test matches, second only to Graeme Smith (53). He captained Australia during their ‘golden era’, in which they clinched two World Cups in 2003 and 2007. The infamous knock of 140 versus India ensured the first ICC World Cup trophy for Ponting in 2003.
Ponting’s successful batting career was relatively unaffected by the responsibilities that came with his captaincy. He is the first Australian batter to score more than 12,000 runs in Test cricket and 10,000 runs in ODI cricket. In both Tests and ODIs, Ponting ranks third in most hundreds scored.
Sir Clive Lloyd
Another good shout for the best captain in the world and of all time is Sir Clive Lloyd. He led a lethal West Indies side to multiple World Cups and several bilateral series wins. During his reign as captain, the West Indies went 27 games without a defeat. Lloyd led the West Indies to win the first-ever cricket World Cup that was held in 1975. When the odds were stacked against his side, he and his team came up with the goods. They repeated the feat by winning the next World Cup as well, which was held in 1979.
The Windies nearly made it three in a row under Lloyd’s captaincy as well, narrowly losing out in the final to India in 1983. During his reign, the West Indies reached their greatest heights, a place that the Windies fans have longed for since the side was dismantled.
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Graeme Smith
Arguably South Africa’s most celebrated captain, Graeme Smith led the side from 2003 to 2014, during which he achieved the record for most wins in Test cricket (53) as a captain. No other player has captained more Test matches in men’s cricket than Smith (109).
Smith has his share of impressive stories. He ended the captaincy of three Englishmen when they couldn’t beat his South African team at home in 2003, 2008 and 2012. Furthermore, he holds the joint record with Sir Clive Llyod for the most victories on away soil (23) by a captain. South Africa’s record at home was the best in the world under Graeme Smith, with the team winning a whopping 30 out of 53 matches, beating Ricky Ponting’s record of 29.
Apart from being an excellent captain, Graeme Smith was also known for his vernacular batting style, as he opened the innings for his side with fireworks. He was inconsistent throughout the 12 years, but still managed to score over 17,000 runs across all formats.
MS Dhoni
MS Dhoni is considered to be one of the best captains of all time. His achievements with the Indian side across all three international formats stand unmatched. From 2007 until the beginning of 2017, Dhoni won two World Cups and a Champions Trophy.
Dhoni led a young Indian side in 2007 to win the ICC T20 World Cup, a tournament in which Team India were given close to no chance of winning the tournament due to the absence of several senior players. Dhoni defied the odds by leading a young and inexperienced side to victory. This story prompted the BCCI to stick with the wicketkeeper-batter as captain for longer. Dhoni then went on to lead Team India to win the World Cup in 2011 after a long wait of 28 years. Finally, Dhoni wrapped up his list of international trophies with an ICC Champions Trophy victory in 2013.
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