In the history of the game, we have not seen too many genuine all-rounders take up the captaincy. The reason for this is that the player is already focused on two different departments and it may not be wise to give the cricketer another task. However, some of the best captains in the game have actually been genuine all-rounders. We have already witnessed the success that players such as Imran Khan have seen. For Team India, Hardik Pandya will be the latest all-rounder to take up the task. He will captain the nation in the 2022 T20I series against Ireland. He has got this chance after winning IPL 2022 as the captain of Gujarat Titans. Before Hardik, India had a few genuine all-rounders at the helm of affairs. On that note, in this article, we take a look at five genuine all-rounders who have captained the Indian men’s team before Hardik Pandya.
1) CK Nayudu (1932-1934)
Captaincy Statistics in Tests: Matches: 4 || Won: 3
CK Nayudu happens to be the first captain of the Indian Test Team. He led India in its first Test. This game happened in 1932 against England at the Lord’s.
In all, CK Nayudu played seven Tests for the country. Apart from making 350 runs, he also collected nine wickets. Talking about his FC stats, he played a total of 207 games, scoring 11825 runs and taking 411 scalps with his right-arm off-break.
2) Lala Amarnath (1947-1952)
Captaincy Statistics in Tests: Matches: 15 || Won: 2
Lala Amarnath is the first post-independence captain for India. He was there at the helm for 15 games but could return with just two wins.
In all, he played 24 Tests for the country. While he contributed 878 runs with the bat, he also took 45 wickets. Hence, he is also a part of this list.
3) Kapil Dev (1982-1987)
Captaincy Statistics in Tests: Matches: 34 || Won: 4
Captaincy Statistics in ODIs: Matches: 74 || Won: 39
Kapil Dev is one of the genuine all-rounders who have captained the Indian men’s team before Hardik Pandya. The Haryana all-rounder needs no introduction when it comes to captaincy. Apart from being arguably the best all-rounder that India has produced, Kapil is also India’s first skipper to win the World Cup.
Initially, it was when Sunil Gavaskar was rested that Kapil Dev got the chance. Later, he led India at the 1983 event but was dropped from the role. Nevertheless, he was re-appointed again and was retained as the skipper for the 1987 World Cup. Although he did excellently well in ODIs, Kapil did not enjoy a great time as a Test skipper, recording just four wins in a reign stretching 34 games.
4) Mohinder Amarnath (1984)
Captaincy Statistics in ODIs: Matches: 1 || Won: 0
Mohinder Amarnath is the son of Lala Amarnath, the former India skipper. While Lala himself was a good all-rounder, his son was extremely vital for India in the 1980s.
The hero of the finals of the 1983 World Cup, it was an all-around performance that ensured a win for India. Although he was the vice-captain for that event, Mohinder did not get too many chances as a captain. He could lead India in just one game but even that encounter ended without a result.
5) Ravi Shastri (1987-1991)
Captaincy Statistics in Tests: Matches: 1 || Won: 1
Captaincy Statistics in ODIs: Matches: 11 || Won: 4
Ravi Shastri is also one of the genuine all-rounders who have captained the Indian men’s team before Hardik Pandya. The former India Head Coach was seen as one of the contenders to take over from Kapil Dev as the captain of the team.
However, that did not happen as Dilip Vengsarkar was also in the fray. Nevertheless, the Mumbai all-rounder captained a total of twelve games for the country.
