IPL History: 4 instances when captaincy was changed in mid-season
The 12th edition of the Indian Premier League has produced some of the most entertaining cricket. Most of the games have been keenly contested which is why this edition has gained so much popularity. While the Chennai Super Kings and the Delhi Capitals have dominated the league, teams such as the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Rajasthan Royals also managed to recover somewhat from their earlier defeats. RR, who were led by Ajinkya Rahane, managed to win only two of their opening eight matches. One of the main reasons behind Rajasthan's poor form was Rahane's failure at the top. RR decided to relieve him off his captaincy duties and named Steve Smith their new skipper. This was not the first time that there was a change in leadership in the middle of the tournament. Let us look at four such instances in the past where the captaincy was changed in the middle of an IPL season:
#1. Gilchrist in place of VVS Laxman (2008)
Deccan Chargers were one of the eight founding members of the IPL in 2008. The team consisted of star players like Adam Gilchrist, Andrew Symonds, Shahid Afridi and Herschelle Gibbs. Besides, the team had Indian talents, with Rohit Sharma, Venugopal Rao and Pragyan Ojha in the squad. VVS Laxman, who was the icon player, was named the captain of the team. Unfortunately, he had an injury which ended his season after just six games. Adam Gilchrist was given the captaincy duties from then on. Even though Gilchrist proved to be a good leader, the team managed to win just two games out of 14 and finished at the bottom of the table. The bowlers failed to deliver with the ball, while the batsmen didn’t fire at crucial moments, and they had a forgettable season. This was the first instance in the IPL where the captaincy was changed in mid-season.
Follow Sportskeeda for all the updates on orange cap 2019, points table, schedule, news, live scores, purple cap and fantasy tips.