List Of India's T20I Captains
Bumrah is about to become India's latest T20I captain (Twitter)
The role of the captain in any cricket team is quite prestigious. The captain is responsible for making crucial on-field decisions, such as setting field placements, deciding bowling changes, and managing the team's strategy during matches. Captains are also expected to lead by example, both in terms of their performance on the field and their behaviour off the field. The Indian cricket team has a massive fan base, and the captaincy role thus comes with immense pressure and expectations.
Jasprit Bumrah, who last played for India in a T20I against Australia on September 25 last year, has returned to action against Ireland, leading the Men in Blue in the T20I series.
On that note, check out a list of India’s T20I captains.
List of India's T20I captains
1) Virender Sehwag
Sehwag led India's first-ever T20I captain (Twitter)
The first captain of the Indian cricket team in T20 Internationals was Virender Sehwag. He led India in their first-ever T20I match against South Africa in 2006, in which the Men in Blue went on to beat the hosts by 6 wickets on the penultimate ball of the game.
2) MS Dhoni
MSD is regarded as the best white-ball captains (Twitter)
The most popular Indian captain who led India to three ICC trophies, one of which was the 2007 T20 World Cup. That tournament was also MS Dhoni’s first major T20I tournament as captain. His leadership during the tournament played a crucial role in shaping India's T20I cricket and his success as a captain eventually led to him becoming the captain of the Indian cricket team in other formats as well, including ODIs and Tests.
3) Suresh Raina
Raina was India's first century in T20Is (Twitter)
Suresh Raina has captained India in just three T20Is, all of which India won. In June 2010, Raina became the youngest captain of the Indian cricket team in the shortest format at the age of 23 years and 197 days.
4) Ajinkya Rahane
Rahane has led India in 2 T20I matches (Twitter)
Ajinkya Rahane led India in two T20Is at the age of 27. This happened during India's tour of Zimbabwe in 2015. The two-match T20I series against Zimbabwe under Rahane's captaincy ended in a 1-1 draw.
The Zimbabwe tour saw the last time Rahane as India's T20I captain; however, the talented batter has led the national team in six Test matches and three ODIs.
5) Virat Kohli
Kohli is only Indian T20I captain to win series in SENA countries (Twitter)
Virat Kohli became the captain of the Indian cricket team in T20 Internationals in January 2017. He took over the T20I captaincy from MS Dhoni, who had stepped down from the position. Kohli's tenure as T20I captain lasted until September 2021, when he announced that he would be stepping down from the role after the T20 World Cup later that year. During his captaincy, Kohli led the team in various T20I series and tournaments, including the ICC T20 World Cup in 2016 and 2021.
6) Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma overtook from Kohli in 2021 (Twitter)
Rohit Sharma took on the captaincy role after Kohli called it quits in 2021. In July 2022, he became the first captain in T20I history to lead their team to 14 consecutive victories. Currently, 39 out of 51 matches led by Sharma. However, after the heartbreak in the T20 World Cup 2022, the national selectors decided to move on from Hitman to give the T20I captaincy to Hardik Pandya.
7) Shikhar Dhawan
The southpaw has led India in three games, losing two and winning one. He was named India’s captain for the first time in the T20I as well as ODI matches against Sri Lanka in June 2021.
8) Rishabh Pant
Rishabh Pant led India in T20Is in 2022 in a series against South Africa, which ended in a 2-2 draw. If not for rain, the wicketkeeper batter would have become the first Indian skipper to beat South Africa in T20Is at home.
9) Hardik Pandya
Pandya's India lost to West Indies in 2023 (AP Photo)
Hardik Pandya has led India in 16 T20Is, winning ten out of them. His first assignment as T20I skipper came in June 2022 against Ireland. Pandya - the captain - has beaten Ireland, New Zealand and Sri Lanka, but his dream run was broken by the Windies in the West Indies Islands.
10) KL Rahul
Rahul has captained India in just one T20I (Twitter)
The only T20I game in which KL Rahul served as the captain was the 2022 Asia Cup game against Afghanistan, which India won by 101 runs. Interestingly, Rahul has also captained India in 7 ODIs and 3 Test matches.
11) Jasprit Bumrah
Bumrah is India's 11th T20I captain
Bumrah, who against Ireland became India's 11th T20I captain, is the first ever bowler to lead the Men in Blue in the shortest format of the game. The right-arm seamer has already India in the longest format, which unfortunately lost to Ben Stokes' England at Edgbaston in 2022.
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