India captaincy records

Current captains

India is currently led by two different people depending on the format. Shubman Gill captains Tests and ODIs, a role he’s held since mid and late 2025 respectively. Shreyas Iyer took over T20Is in June 2026. Neither record is closed yet, so their numbers will keep moving through this page rather than settling the way the rest of this list has.

Shubman Gill

With Rohit Sharma stepping down from his Test captaincy and announcing his retirement from the format, BCCI appointed Shubman Gill ahead of India’s tour of England in June 2025. Following India’s Champions Trophy 2025 triumph, BCCI also handed over the ODI reins to Gill, keeping World Cup 2027 in mind.

Shreyas Iyer

With Suryakumar Yadav struggling for form, the BCCI wanted to rebuild the T20I side for the 2028 World Cup. Suryakumar was dropped from the squad and also removed from captaincy in June 2026, just three months after he led India to their second consecutive T20 World Cup.

Captaincy records of all Indian captains

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Founding era

Kapil Dev’s five years in charge produced India’s first ICC title, a 1983 World Cup win that came as 66/1 outsiders, alongside a Test record that never quite matched the white-ball highlight reel.

The 1990s handovers

Sachin Tendulkar took the job twice and gave it up twice. Mohd Azharuddin held it on either side of him. Neither stretch is remembered fondly.

The rebuild: Ganguly, Dravid, Kumble

Three captains, one continuous project. Sourav Ganguly took India from eighth to second in the Test rankings. During his tenure, India won the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy, jointly with Sri Lanka and finished runners-up in the 2003 World Cup.

During Ganguly’s rebuild tenure, India found a new identity. They moved away from a timid image abroad and were more aggressive. The Test series draw against Australia, in Australia, was a major boost. India also chased down a 325-run target to win the NatWest Trophy final against England. Ganguly also mentored many youngsters, including Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh, and Harbhajan Singh, all of whom went on to help India become world champions.

Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble each inherited a piece of what he built and added their own first-ever milestones. India won their only second Test series in England under Dravid’s captaincy, and their maiden Test in South Africa.

The Dhoni era

The most successful phase in India’s white-ball cricket history was when MS Dhoni was the captain. India lifted three ICC titles (2007 T20 WC, 2013 Champions Trophy and 2011 World Cup). He reaped the rewards of Ganguly-Dravid’s rebuild era.

However, despite white ball success, India did not make a mark in Test cricket during his captaincy.

The Kohli era

If Dhoni is credited for India’s white-ball resurgence, the credit for India’s Test resurgence goes to Virat Kohli. India became a dominating force in Test cricket abroad, winning their first-ever Test series in Australia and defending that three years later. At home, India were a dominant side too, never losing a Test series during his captaincy.

India went on to lift the Test mace during his tenure, even though an ICC title eluded them. He maintained a win percentage of 66.91 in Tests. India were equally successful in ODIs during his tenure with a 70.43% win percentage. However, an ICC title eluded him/

Rohit and the coaching handovers

With Kohli stepping down as the captain, Rohit Sharma was made India’s all-format captain. Under his leadership, India ended their ICC title drought, winning the 2024 T20 World Cup. India went close to the 2023 World Cup title, losing the final to Australia at home, despite winning all other matches in that tournament. But in 2025, India lifted the ICC Champions Trophy to wrap up Rohit’s captaincy era.

Suryakumar Yadav took charge of the T20 side and defended the T20 World Cup title at home in 2026 and also won the Asia Cup in 2025.

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