3 players who became Indian team's captain before leading an IPL franchise
Ever since IPL's inception, the BCCI has given preference to the top performers of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and selected them for the Indian team. Earlier, domestic cricket was the only way for the new players to earn the attention of the selectors, but now, several players have earned maiden national call-ups after performing well in the IPL.
In fact, players who have done a great job as a captain in IPL have also been named as the Indian team's skipper. The latest example is Hardik Pandya, who made a magnificent comeback as the Gujarat Titans captain in IPL 2022. While there were question marks over his future in international cricket before IPL 2022, Pandya was named the captain for the Ireland tour in mid-2022.
Hardik Pandya, the right choice, as India’s T20 Captain?
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The likes of KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant have also become Indian captains after impressing in the IPL. On that note, here are three such players who got an opportunity to lead the Indian side before they captained their IPL franchises.
#1 Ruturaj Gaikwad will lead India in Asian Games T20Is
BCCI surprised the Indian cricket fans by naming Ruturaj Gaikwad as the new captain for the upcoming Asian Games T20I tournament in September-October 2023. Gaikwad has never led the Chennai Super Kings before in IPL, but the right-handed batter has some experience of leading Maharashtra in domestic cricket.
Having spent so much time with 'Captain Cool' MS Dhoni at the Chennai Super Kings, Gaikwad would have learned some leadership skills from Thala as well. It will be exciting to see how he leads the Indian team at the Asian Games.
India have qualified for the quarterfinals directly in the mega event, meaning the first match of Gaikwad as Indian captain will be a do-or-die game.
#2 Jasprit Bumrah captained India in Test cricket last year
Jasprit Bumrah has been a member of the Mumbai Indians squad since 2013. The right-arm pacer is one of the most experienced names present in the MI team, but he has not received a single chance to lead the team. He has played under the captaincy of either Rohit Sharma or Kieron Pollard.
Bumrah made his debut as Indian captain last year against England. When Rohit Sharma contracted COVID-19, BCCI named Jasprit Bumrah as the new captain. He did not have the best debut as the captain, as India lost that game to England.
#3 Ajinkya Rahane led India against Zimbabwe in 2015
Ajinkya Rahane has not been India's full-time captain but he was the deputy to Virat Kohli for a long time. In 2015, when India visited Zimbabwe for a white-ball series, the likes of Kohli, MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, and Rohit Sharma were rested. BCCI named Rahane as the captain of a second-string Indian squad for the ODIs and T20Is.
Rahane led India to a 3-0 win in ODIs, followed by a 1-1 draw in the two-match T20I series. Notably, his IPL captaincy debut came in the 2017 season, when he led the Rising Pune Supergiant in one match when Steve Smith was absent. In 2018, Rahane became Rajasthan Royals' captain.