A leader or captain plays a crucial role in any sport or work because to gather a team and lead them to a goal is a very rare skillset, and every good performer or player can’t be a good captain. In the history of cricket, we have seen some of the greatest captains of all time who have dominated the cricket world.
But some of those captains also become great because of the way they lead an average team to become world beaters. This article is also related to such stats, where we will talk about the best captain in the world. This will include all the captains who have made their team successful and led them to a long period of time consistently. In this article, we will talk about ten candidates who come to mind when it is about the best captain in the world of cricket.
List of Best Captain in the World
| Player | Span | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | Draw | W/L | %W | %L |
| RIcky Ponting (AUS) | 2002-2012 | 324 | 220 | 77 | 2 | 13 | 2.85 | 67.9 | 23.76 |
| MS Dhoni (IND) | 2007-2018 | 332 | 178 | 120 | 6 | 15 | 1.48 | 53.61 | 36.14 |
| Graeme Smith (SA) | 2003-2014 | 286 | 163 | 89 | 1 | 27 | 1.83 | 56.99 | 31.11 |
| Steve Waugh (AUS) | 1997-2004 | 163 | 108 | 44 | 3 | 7 | 2.45 | 66.25 | 26.99 |
| Clive Llyod (WI) | 1974-1985 | 158 | 100 | 30 | 1 | 26 | 3.33 | 63.29 | 18.98 |
| Imran Khan (PAK) | 1982-1992 | 187 | 89 | 67 | 1 | 26 | 1.32 | 47.59 | 35.82 |
| Sourav Ganguly (IND) | 1999-2005 | 196 | 97 | 79 | 0 | 15 | 1.22 | 49.48 | 40.3 |
| Arjuna Ranatunga (SL) | 1988-1999 | 249 | 101 | 114 | 1 | 25 | 0.88 | 40.56 | 45.78 |
| Eoin Morgan (ENG) | 2011-2022 | 198 | 118 | 67 | 4 | 0 | 1.76 | 59.59 | 33.83 |
| Kane Williamson (NZ) | 2012-2024 | 206 | 107 | 84 | 2 | 8 | 1.27 | 51.94 | 40.77 |
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10. Kane Williamson (New Zealand)
Kane Williamson will always be remembered as the best all-format player that his country produced ever. He has still 3-4 years of cricket left in him and he will end up as one of the modern-day greats. Not just his batting but his captaincy is also his strong skillset. New Zealand have never one ICC event but under Williamson, they went on to win the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship beating India in the final. So far, Williamson has led New Zealand in 206 matches and won 107 of them.
9. Eoin Morgan (England)
Leadership is not about just wins; it is also about the impact you can create as a captain, and that’s what Eoin Morgan did when he took England to new successes. Morgan took captaincy after the 2015 ODI World Cup. England exited the group stage of the tournament and were in bad conditions. Under Morgan, England won their first ODI World Cup. England were unstoppable in white-ball format under him, and he is among the most successful England’s captains ever. He led the English team in 198 matches between 2011 and 2022 and won 118 of them.
8. Arjuna Ranatunga (Sri Lanka)
Arjuna Ranatunga was one of the greatest leaders in Sri Lankan cricket history. He was the first and only captain to lead his country to the ODI World Cup win, which came in 1996. Ranatunga was one of the most influential figures, and many generations took up this sport after looking up to him. He scored over 12500 international runs and led Sri Lanka in most matches. Under him, Sri Lanka played 249 games and won 101 of them. Ranatunga is a good contender for the best captain in the world.
7. Saurav Ganguly (India)
The captaincy era of Sourav Ganguly set the base for the coming generation of superstars. It was his captaincy which changed India’s stance in the cricket world. He was an aggressive captain, which saw within the team as well. He was the captain under whom India started to challenge and win in overseas conditions. Ganguly led India to win the 2002 Champions Trophy. Under him, India played 196 games and won 97 of them.
6. Imran Khan (Pakistan)
Imran Khan has to be on this list because he was probably the best captain in the world of cricket that Pakistan produced. His leadership skills and ability to take the best out of the players was second to none. Under his captaincy, Pakistan were a very strong side and went on to win the 1992 World Cup. Imran the ideal of Wasim Akram, who himself is a legend. So as a player and captain, Imran Khan has a great legacy. He led Pakistan in 187 matches and they won 89 of them.
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5. Clive Lloyd (West Indies)
Only two captains have won two ODI World Cups in history, and the first one was Clive Llyod. He was the one that was the captain of the world-winning West Indies between 1974 and 1985. West Indies dominated the world, and he introduced many legendary players to the world. West Indies won the 1975 and 1979 World Cups and made it to the final of the 1983 edition. Under his captaincy, West Indies played 158 games and won 100 of them. He was the first captain to lead a country to win 100 matches in international cricket.
4. Steve Waugh (Australia)
If we look at the history, Steve Waugh had the best win percentage as captain. He was the one that took Australia to lift the 1999 ODI World Cup, their second title, and made the Men in Yellow a force to reckon with. Waugh captained Australia between 1997 and 2004. He led them to 163 matches, and they won 108 games at an astonishing win percentage of 66.25.
3. Graeme Smith (South Africa)
Imagine getting a captaincy at the young age of 21 and making the team into a formidable side. Graeme Smith made his debut in 2002, and next year he became the captain of the team. He is the most-capped captain who has led South Africa in 109 Test matches. Under Smith, South Africa became the first ever team to achieve No. 1 rankings in all three formats. Smith led them in 286 matches and won 163 games.
2. MS Dhoni (India)
Some might argue that Ponting has better stats as captain than MS Dhoni. But Ponting became the captain of the team that already was champion under Steve Waugh, but Dhoni took the captaincy when India had a horrible time in the 2007 World Cup. That’s what makes Dhoni the best captain in the cricket world. He is the only captain to lead a country to three different ICC titles. Under Dhoni, India won the 2007 T20 World Cup, the 2011 World Cup, and the 2013 Champions Trophy. India won 178 games under him from 332 matches.
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1. Ricky Ponting (Australia)
Ricky Ponting has won more ICC tiles as captain than Pakistan, Sri Lanka, or England. He will be among the top captains to play the game. Ponting had an incredible career as a player or captain both. He led Australia to two ODI World Cup wins and two Champions Trophy wins. Under his captaincy, Australia played 324 matches between 2002 and 2012 and won 220 games. As a captain, Ponting has most wins.
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