6 semi-finals, 2 titles – How have Indian captains performed at the World Cup?

The 12th edition of the World Cup will begin in England on March 30. The tournament which started in 1975 in the same country has come a long way over the years and has truly become a spectacle. India has participated in all the 11 editions of the tournament, winning two titles. In the 11 World Cups, six captains have taken the helm of the Indian team, with Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni being the two winning captains. Virat Kohli will become the seventh captain to lead India at the World Cup. Here we take a look at how the previous six captains have led India in the 11 editions of the tournament.

S Venkataraghavan, 1975 and 1979

In the first two editions of the tournament (75 and 79), India did not pay much attention to the ODI format of the game. One of the best spinners of his era, Venkataraghavan was a talisman for the Indian team in the first two editions of the tournament. In 1975, the team was inexperienced in nature and the 30-year-old spinner was given the command of the team. India played two tournaments under his captaincy and did not perform well, only winning one match in the two editions. Venkataraghavan himself did not work wonders, not managing to pick up a single wicket in the two editions.

Kapil Dev, 1983 and 1987

Before the third edition of the tournament, the Indian team was going through a phase of transition. Sunil Gavaskar was leading the team, but it was affecting his performances as a batsman. In 1982, Kapil Dev was handed the reigns of the team and he played a vital role in India’s one-off victory during the tour of West Indies. Kapil Dev was still an inexperienced campaigner at the time, having played only 32 matches. During the World Cup, both his skills as an all-rounder and as a captain came to the forefront. In India’s journey to becoming World Champions, Kapil Dev’s role was an important one. He scored 303 runs and was India’s top scorer during the tournament. He also picked up 12 wickets and was the third most successful bowler.

After the 1983 World Cup triumph till the 87 edition, India changed their captain a number of times. After losing the Test and ODI series against West Indies, Kapil Dev was relieved from his captaincy duties and Gavaskar was once again reinstated. Under his guidance, India won the 1985 World Championship. Kapil Dev was again handed the leadership responsibilities ahead of the 1987 World Cup. India was one of the favourites in the tournament, being the defending champions in home conditions, but could not go past the semi-final stage of the tournament. Kapil Dev had a poor tournament, scoring only 72 runs and picking up 5 wickets.

Mohammad Azharuddin, 1992, 1996 and 1999

After the 1987 World Cup, the Indian team underwent many changes. The old guard was being replaced by new players and there was also a change in leadership. In 1989, Mohammad Azharuddin was appointed as the captain of the ODI team for the first time. Under his leadership, the Indian team played three World Cups. Between the three editions, the captaincy was snatched away from Azhar many times, but he was the man the selectors trusted when the tournament came around. India reached the semi-finals in 1996, while they failed to make the knockouts during the 1992 and the 1999 editions.

In the 1992 edition, Azhar was India’s best batsman, scoring 332 runs at an average of 47.42 in eight matches with 4 half-centuries. In the 1996 tournament, India reached the semi-finals, but Azhar did not have the greatest of times in the middle. In 7 matches and 6 innings, he only managed to score 143 runs. Even in 1999, Azhar as a batsman proved to be a flop. In 8 matches and 7 innings, he scored 161 runs with one half-century.

Sourav Ganguly, 2003

After a wait of 20 long years, India reached the finals in the 2003 edition of the tournament. One of India’s greatest captains of all-time, Sourav Ganguly was leading the team. As a batsman, he had an excellent showing in the tournament. Keeping the interests of the team in mind, Ganguly gave up his favoured position of opening the innings. In 11 matches and 11 innings, Ganguly scored 465 runs at an average of 58.12 with three centuries. Ganguly also picked up 3 wickets in the tournament.

Rahul Dravid, 2007

After his well-documented issues with Greg Chappell, Ganguly was removed from the position of the captain. The team was performing well under the leadership of Rahul Dravid before the tournament, winning a record number of matches. But the 2007 edition of the tournament was nothing short of a disaster and the team was dumped out in the first round itself. Dravid could not inspire the team as a batsman, scoring 81 runs in three matches with one half-century.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, 2011 and 2015

After sacking Dravid as the skipper, Indian selectors took a bold decision and handed the ODI captaincy to MS Dhoni. The wicketkeeper-batsman had already left his mark as a skipper, winning the maiden edition of the T20 World Cup in 2007. Four years later, he created history at the 2011 World Cup, becoming only the second Indian captain to win the tournament.

As a captain, Dhoni was a shining light, but he had a lukewarm tournament as a batsman. Apart from his match-winning knock of 91 in the final, he did not manage to score a single half-century. In 9 matches and 8 innings, he scored 241 runs.

In the 2015 edition, India were the defending champions but could not make it past the semi-final stage. Dhoni delivered a similar performance with the bat like the previous edition, scoring 237 runs with two-half-centuries.