IPL started in 2008 as a mega league based on a franchise system. The first season saw eight founding members as franchise-based teams. Seven of the teams still participate in the IPL whereas the Deccan Chargers team was defunct. New management bought the Hyderabad franchise and rebranded it as Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Out of the eight teams, some have received considerable success whereas a few have failed to find any substantial success. Out of all the sports played in World cricket is one of the few which has the maximum importance of cricket. Overall 48 players have captained one or more games in 12 seasons of IPL. Some captains in IPL have left a long-lasting effect. Let us take a look at the five captains with the most matches in IPL:
Mahendra Singh Dhoni:
The history of IPL and MS Dhoni pretty much go hand in hand. The former Indian skipper started as a captain in 2008 and is longest-serving captain in the tournament. Having led the side for a record 174 times he is comfortably sitting in the list of captains with most matches in IPL. Out of the eight captains that started the era of IPL, only Mahendra Singh Dhoni is still serving as the captain. He led the Chennai Supers Kings from 2008 to 2015. When the yellow army was banned for some irregularities in 2015 he captained the Rising Super Pune Giants team for 2016 and 2017. He again captained the side for the 2018 and 2019 season. He has captained a side in IPL for 174 times. He has lifted the IPL trophy three times and is ranked at number one in the list of captains with most matches in IPL.
Gautam Gambhir
The batsman turned politician has had different stints in the leadership role. He captained the Delhi based team in 2009 and 2010 for two full seasons. After impressing in patches he was bought by the SRK owned Kolkata Knight Riders for the 2011 tournament. His aggressive style of leadership and motivational presence of the field came to the forefront with Knight Riders. The player shone in the role and established himself as a darling in the eyes of several fans. He tried another leadership stint with the Delhi Capitals in 2018. However, his second stint proved to be a failure, and soon declared his retirement from the field. Gautam Gambhir is ranked second on the list of captains with the most matches in IPL with 129 games under his belt.
Virat Kohli
The Indian captain has faced contrasting fortunes in the domestic tournament. Ranked third in the list of captains with most matches in IPL, he was handed the reigns of the Challengers in 2011 after shining with the bat in the 2011 World Cup. In eight years since then, he has led the team in 110 games. Kohli has often faced the music due to bad performances churned out by his side in the highly competitive league.
Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma is arguably one of the best leaders in IPL. He has an enviable trophy cabinet which consists of four titles. The explosive opener started his IPL career with Deccan Chargers in 2008 where he won a trophy. He moved to Mumbai Indians in 2010 in a step that established himself as a legendary status in the franchise-based tournament. The Mumbai born batsman was handed the reigns of the team after the retirement of Sachin Tendulkar. He has led the Indians to three trophies and has captained the side for 104 times.
Adam Gilchrist
Gilchrist is the only foreign player in the list of captains with most matches in IPL. The Australian wicket-keeper who is often seen as a predecessor of MS Dhoni-led the Deccan Chargers to a titular victory in the second edition of the tournament. He later went on to lead the Kings XI Punjab side. He captained a team for 74 games in the history of IPL.