In the space of cricket, there is no question about how big the India vs Australia Test series is, popularly known as the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. From Indian fans to Australian fans, and fans all over the world, everyone feels the heat for almost 1.5 months as both teams fiercely compete.
Currently, India has won the series a total of 10 times, while Australia has clinched it 5 times. It’s important to mention that since 2017, India has won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in four consecutive series: 2017, 2018-19, 2020-21, and 2022-23. As mentioned, fans all over the world feel the pressure, so we can well imagine how much intensity the captains of both teams have faced in the past, a situation which is likely to remain the same in the future as well.
But there are quite a few captains who fought all these scenarios and came out on top with their leadership and took their teams to victory. From Australian captains to Indian maestros, they’ve led their camps impressively. Take a look at the leaders of those who have performed exceptionally well in the India vs Australia series, or say the Border-Gavaskar series.
Most successful captain in Border-Gavaskar Trophy
Rank | Player | Team | Span | Matches | Wins | Losses | Draw | NR | W/L | %W | %L | % Tied | % Draw | %NR |
1 | MS Dhoni | India | 2008-2014 | 13 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 61.53 | 30.76 | 0 | 7.69 | 0 |
2 | Steve Waugh | Australia | 1999-2004 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1.66 | 50 | 30 | 0 | 20 | 0 |
3 | Michael Clarke | Australia | 2011-2014 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1.66 | 62.5 | 37.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
4 | Virat Kohli | India | 2014-2020 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0.75 | 30 | 40 | 0 | 30 | 0 |
5 | Sourav Ganguly | India | 2001-2004 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 33.33 | 33.33 | 0 | 33.33 | 0 |
6 | Steven Smith | Australia | 2014-2023 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1.5 | 33.33 | 22.22 | 0 | 44.44 | 0 |
7 | Ajinkya Rahane | India | 2017-2021 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 75 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
8 | Ricky Ponting | Australia | 2004-2010 | 11 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0.33 | 18.18 | 54.54 | 0 | 27.27 | 0 |
9 | Tim Paine | Australia | 2018-2021 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0.5 | 25 | 50 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
10 | Rohit Sharma | India | 2023-2023 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 50 | 25 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
It is former India skipper MS Dhoni who is still leading the charts as the most successful captain in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, having captained in 13 games in the India vs Australia series. Under his leadership, India won 8 and lost 4. As for the most successful skipper from the Australian side, it is Steve Waugh, who still holds the second spot. Waugh captained the Australian team in the late 1990s and early 2000s, a period during which Australia dominated the cricket circuit, whether in ODIs or Tests. When it comes to the Border-Gavaskar series, under his captaincy, the team won many times. Steve Waugh played his last Border-Gavaskar series in 2003-04.
Who will captain India in BGT 2024
Since India is all set to face Australia once again, but there are chances that India captain Rohit Sharma may miss the first BGT Test due to personal reasons. If that happens, we may see Jasprit Bumrah take charge as the leader. The confirmation regarding this scenario came directly from Gautam Gambhir, who clarified it during a press conference before leaving for Australia.