T20 cricket! It’s like a supercharged game of our generation! Captains are the key. They got to make lightning-fast decisions, like switching bowlers faster than a cheetah or tweaking the field like a boss. And forget about boring pep talks, they got to keep the team’s energy on fire! It’s all about who can think and move the fastest in this crazy cricket sprint! In a pressure cooker like the IPL, where matches come thick and fast, this captaincy thing becomes super important.
The IPL has seen its share of champion leaders, but some just haven’t clicked. Even international superstars who crushed it as captains for their countries haven’t always fared well in the IPL.
We’re talking about big names here! But to pick the worst, we only looked at captains who played at least 25 games and then ranked them by how many wins they got. Here’s who came in last!
1. Kumar Sangakkara
Kumar Sangakkara? The inspirational Sri Lankan leader? Yep, him! The guy who’s a master tactician and almost won a World Cup? Believe it or not, he’s also one of the worst IPL captains ever!
This batting whiz with lightning-fast gloves led Sri Lanka like a champ, racking up wins left and right. But the IPL? Yikes.
This cricket player kept switching teams – Kings XI Punjab, Deccan Chargers, even the new Sunrisers Hyderabad. But no matter which team he played for, they just couldn’t win! He changed jerseys all the time, but never seemed to win a game. In a whopping 47 games, he only managed 15 wins! That’s a measly 31% win rate, the absolute worst for captains who played a bunch of games (at least 25).
| Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kings XI Punjab | 47 | 15 | 30 | 2 | 31.91 |
| Deccan Chargers | 47 | 15 | 30 | 2 | 31.91 |
| Sunrisers Hyderabad | 47 | 15 | 30 | 2 | 31.91 |
Also Read: Indian Premier League (IPL) Betting Statistics
2. Mahela Jayawardene
Mahela was a stunning Sri Lankan batting genius. He was also an amazing captain! He got too many awards including the “Captain of the Year” in 2006. Talk about ruling the team! When he was boss, Sri Lanka smashed a whopping 18 Test matches out of 38, and drew another 8 – what a legend! Limited-overs cricket? Jayawardene aced that too! He led Sri Lanka to a whopping 68 wins in 126 ODIs. Plus, he was the OG captain of Sri Lanka’s first T20I team – history maker!
But wait! The IPL turned sour for Jayawardene. Despite captaining three whole teams, they only won 10 measly matches out of 30. Talk about a slump! That’s a teeny tiny winning percentage of just 33%.
So, Sri Lanka’s captain fantastic turned into IPL’s not-so-fantastic captain. That’s the wild ride of Mahela Jayawardene’s leadership!
| Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kings XI Punjab | 30 | 10 | 19 | 1 | 33.33 |
| Kochi Tuskers Kerala | 30 | 10 | 19 | 1 | 33.33 |
| Delhi Daredevils (Delhi Capitals) | 30 | 10 | 19 | 1 | 33.33 |
3. Sourav Ganguly
Cricket legend Sourav Ganguly might shock you! He’s captain awesome for India, but here’s a twist!
Ganguly, aka “Dada,” turned India’s team into super fighters. They crushed tough games! With Dada in charge, India conquered 21 Test matches, even winning 11 abroad – wowza!
He even led the one-day team for 6 years after a big cheating mess. Talk about a comeback! Dada rocked it, winning 76 out of 146 matches – what a champion!
But then came super-fast T20 cricket – boom, boom! Dada’s batting went splat! He never played a T20 international match and struggled in the IPL – ouch!
This “Prince of Kolkata” even coached IPL teams, but double trouble! By then, Dada was retired from big cricket. So, T20, this tiny cricket, was a whole new game – and super tricky!
| Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kolkata Knight Riders | 42 | 17 | 25 | 0 | 40.48% |
| Pune Warriors India | 42 | 17 | 25 | 0 | 40.48% |
Also Read: Indian Cricket Salaries: The BCCI Contract List 2024
4. George Bailey
Wow! Aussie cricket legend George Bailey rocks in international matches, but the IPL? No way! Captained Australia in a whopping 125 games, but the IPL just didn’t like him.
Get this! Bailey’s the only Aussie captain who NEVER played a test match! But his leadership skills are FIRE. He captained Australia in tons of one-day matches (29) and T20s (28), winning a bunch (16 in ODIs, 14 in T20s).
Back in 2014, Kings XI Punjab thought Bailey was their golden ticket and made him captain. BIG mistake! The team started LOSING way more than winning (19 losses to 16 wins) under Bailey. HUGE disappointment after being runners-up in 2014! Kings XI Punjab even finished dead LAST in 2015. Yikes!
| Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kings XI Punjab | 36 | 16 | 19 | 1 | 44.44% |
5. Rahul Dravid
Now let us see about Rahul Dravid – the ultimate team player! This legend never complained, batting anywhere, even keeping wickets if needed. Captaincy? No sweat! Dravid, aka “The Wall,” led the team in Tests, inspiring youngsters although wins were a bit rare.
Dravid rocked in One-Day matches, leading his team to victory in over half the games he captained! Unreal!
Except…T20 cricket? Not his best friend. Runs were slow, and his captaincy wasn’t a home run. But here’s the shocker: Dravid, despite not shining in T20s himself, secretly trained some of today’s cricket superstars! Talk about a hidden hero!
| Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Challengers Bangalore | 48 | 22 | 26 | 0 | 45.83% |
| Rajasthan Royals | 48 | 22 | 26 | 0 | 45.83% |
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