IPL 2026: Ranking current captains based on their win percentage

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is known for its fierce competition as ten captains every year lead their team with an aim to lift the coveted trophy at the end of the season. Over the years, several captains have acknowledged the challenges of winning the IPL trophy and the difficulties that come their way during a long season.

However, few have mastered the formula for winning the elusive title, time and again, finding the right mantra to go all the way in the tournament and stake a claim to the trophy. While only a few from the current crop of IPL captains might have won the tournament, several have the potential to lift the trophy in the near future and be counted amongst the greatest to have led their teams.

Here’s a ranking of all the current captains of the ten IPL franchises based on their leadership careers so far:

 1. Rajat Patidar

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain changed his franchise’s fortune in the very first season itself, guiding them to their maiden triumph. Patidar’s captaincy in RCB brought a sense of freedom for the players, who played without any past baggage and delivered a performance for the ages to end their long wait for an IPL title. Patidar has captained 13 matches so far and led his team to ten wins with a win percentage of 76.92%.

2. Hardik Pandya

The all-rounder assumed the captaincy for the first time during the 2022 edition and led the Gujarat Titans (GT) to a title victory in their maiden season. Pandya further led Gujarat to another final in the following season but lost to Chennai Super Kings in the summit clash. After switching bases to Mumbai Indians (MI) in 2024, he had a tough time leading in his first season but returned to his best, guiding them to the playoffs in 2025. Among the current crop of captains, Pandya stands out as the second most successful, having led his teams to 35 wins out of 60 matches with a win percentage of 58.33%.

3. Shreyas Iyer

Iyer assumed the leadership for the first time in 2018, being trusted to lead Delhi Capitals (DC). Under his captaincy, he changed the fortunes of the team, guiding them to the playoffs after seven years in 2019 and later to their maiden final in 2020. However, DC failed to clinch the title and lost to Mumbai Indians in the summit clash. Iyer later switched bases to the Kolkata Knight Riders in 2022 and led them to their third title in 2024. He again led Punjab Kings to their second final during his debut season for the franchise in 2025, becoming the first captain in IPL history to lead two different teams to a final in successive years. In his IPL career so far, Iyer has led his teams to 51 wins out of 87 matches, having a win percentage of 58.62%.

4. Shubman Gill

The youngster was handed over the leadership of Gujarat Titans (GT) in 2024, following Hardik Pandya’s trade to Mumbai Indians. The task of leadership seemed too daunting for Gill in his first season as GT failed to make it to the playoffs for the first time in their history. However, he finally found his feet in his second season as captain, guiding Gujarat to the playoffs. In the 27 matches led in his IPL career, Gil has guided his team to 14 wins at a win percentage of 51.85%.

5. Rishabh Pant

Pant had his first taste of leadership in 2021 when he was appointed Delhi Capitals’ captain in Shreyas Iyer’s absence. He guided the team to the playoffs in his maiden season as captain but failed to emulate his feat in the following three editions. Pant later went to Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) but had a see-saw season, where LSG finished seventh after a strong start. Pant has led his IPL teams to 29 wins out of 57 matches at a win percentage of 50.87%.

6. Axar Patel

The all-rounder was handed over the leadership duties for the first time during the 2025 season at Delhi Capitals (DC). Delhi had a good start to the season, winning six out of their first eight matches. However, their campaign went astray in the second half, winning only one out of their next six games as they failed to qualify for the playoffs. Patel led DC in 13 games and won six, having a win percentage of 46.15%.

7. Ruturaj Gaikwad

Gaikwad was entrusted with the herculean task of continuing MS Dhoni’s legacy at Chennai Super Kings (CSK). However, he had a tough first season, where CSK failed to reach the playoffs and he could only lead his team in a handful of matches in 2025 due to injury. Gaikwad has led CSK to 8 wins out of 19 matches having a win percentage of 42.10%.

8. Ajinkya Rahane

Rahane had his first taste of full-time leadership at Rajasthan Royals in 2018 and guided his team to the playoffs in his debut season as skipper. He further continued in his role in 2019 but was removed from his position midway through the season, with Steve Smith replacing him. He was again handed over the leadership duties at Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2025, but failed to take his team into the playoffs. Rahane holds a dismal record as IPL skipper, having led his teams to just 14 wins out of 38 matches, with a win percentage of 36.84%.

9. Riyan Parag

The youngster was trusted with the leadership role for Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the absence of Sanju Samson in 2025. Parag had baptism by fire in his debut season as Rajasthan struggled massively throughout the edition, and he could only guide his team to two wins out of eight matches, having a win percentage of 25%.

Note: Ishan Kishan, who will be leading Sunrisers Hyderabad until Pat Cummins’ return, hasn’t captained in IPL so far and hence didn’t feature in our rankings.