This has to be the easiest one to guess. Mahendra Singh Dhoni has played the most matches as captain in IPL history. Captaincy and Dhoni have gone hand in hand in the Indian Premier League history. Until 2019, he has played 174 matches as a captain in IPL.
He became the captain of Chennai Super Kings in the inaugural edition and remained at the helm of affairs until 2015. The franchise then faced a 2-year suspension. Dhoni moved to the new franchise Rising Pune Supergiant in 2016. He led the Pune-based franchise in that year.
However, Australia’s Steve Smith took his place in 2017 and it was the first time Dhoni played as a player and not a captain. CSK returned in 2018 and so did Dhoni as the captain of the yellow brigade. Under his leadership, CSK has won the IPL title 3 times and also, made it to the playoffs every season. Needless to say, he has the best winning percentage amongst all other captains.
Gautam Gambhir appears second on the list. The left-hander led Delhi Daredevils initially but he came to the fore when he took over the captaincy of Kolkata Knight Riders. The franchise won 2 IPL titles under Gambhir. In 2018, he moved to Delhi Daredevils and led the side in the first half. But his personal form, as well as the team’s performance, declined and as a result, he stepped down.
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma follow on the list who have been prominent captains for quite some time of Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians respectively. While RCB is yet to win a title under Kohli, Rohit has led MI to 4 titles.
| Most Matches in IPL as Captian | ||||||||
| Player | Team | Span | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | NR | Winning % |
| MS Dhoni | CSK, RPS | 2008-2020 | 188 | 110 | 77 | 0 | 1 | 58.82 |
| Gautam Gambhir | DD, KKR | 2009-2018 | 129 | 71 | 57 | 1 | 0 | 55.42 |
| Virat Kohli | RCB | 2011-2020 | 125 | 55 | 63 | 3 | 4 | 46.69 |
| Rohit Sharma | MI | 2013-2020 | 116 | 68 | 44 | 4 | 0 | 60.34 |
| Adam Gilchrist | DC, KXIP | 2008-2013 | 74 | 35 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 47.29 |
| David Warner | DD, SRH | 2013-2020 | 63 | 34 | 28 | 1 | 0 | 54.76 |
| Shane Warne | RR | 2008-2011 | 55 | 30 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 55.45 |
| Virender Sehwag | DD, KXIP | 2008-2015 | 53 | 28 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 53.77 |
| Sachin Tendulkar | MI | 2008-2011 | 51 | 30 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 58.82 |
| Rahul Dravid | RR, RCB | 2008-2013 | 48 | 22 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 45.83 |
-Stats as of IPL 2020
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