India vs Pakistan: Most successful captains over the years
While India looks to cement their place in the finals of the 2018 Asia Cup after three wins on the trot, arch-rivals Pakistan will hope to level scores with the Men in Blue in the Super Four clash after defeating Afghanistan in a thriller contest, to see them win by 3 wickets.
India walloped Pakistan by eight wickets in the group match three days ago but if history is any indication, the Men in Blue will take their traditional rivals lightly at their own peril. After being made to work hard by minnows Hong Kong in their tournament opener, India got their act together in the much-awaited group game against Pakistan and produced a clinical display to make short work of Sarfraz Ahmed's team.
The big clash between the arch-rivals is the toughest test for any captain and they must step up their game for the highly anticipated clash.
The two rivals have produced some great captains of world cricket but whenever any team suffers a loss, the fingers are directly pointed at the credibility of a captain. On various levels, each team is known to give their all which makes the encounter all the more thrilling, exciting and pulsating.
Every clash between India and Pakistan has a buzz around the world as it's not an everyday scenario. Since it's a rare occurrence, let's take a stroll through the years to reminisce some of the great captains who have come out on top.
Here is the list of Some great captains of India and Pakistan against each other:
1. Imran Khan
The all-rounder was a game changer in Pakistan's cricket history. He not only led the Green Gang to famous 1992 World Cup triumph but was also the key reason for his nation success against India. Under Imran's captaincy, Pakistan beat India 19 times out of 24 games he took charge of, with a win percentage of 82.60. He led a Pakistan team who at that time had a fierce bowling attack that consisted of Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Abdul Kadir.
2. Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Without any doubt, Dhoni is known as one of the most successful captains of Indian history and his records need no introduction. Under Mahi's captaincy, India have won 11 matches out of 18 which also includes the famous World Cup 2011 semifinal victory. Captain cool's calm nature helped the Indian team to hold their nerves against their arch-rivals in many games. Dhoni has a win percentage of 61.11 against the Green Gang which makes him as India's most successful captain against them.
3. Wasim Akram
Fondly known as the 'Sultan of Swing', one of the best left-arm swing bowlers to ever play the game was Pakistan's Wasim Akram. Not only did he trouble the Indian batsmen with his reverse swing but his captaincy skills and mind games were also at level best against the Men in Blue. Akram led the Pakistan side in 17 matches against India and he won 12 out of them with 70.58-win percentage.
4. Sachin Tendulkar
He is surely the greatest batsman to ever play the game, but his captaincy skills were always questionable by critics. Tendulkar was India's key warrior against the big clash against Pakistan and he destroyed Pakistan bowling attack in two World Cups: 2003 and 2011. But nobody knows he was India’s second most successful captain against the Green Gang in ODI’s. Under the Master Blaster's captaincy, India played 21 matches and won eight out of them while two were ended in no results. Tendulkar's win percentage against Pakistan is less than 50 per cent as captain as at that India were going through the transitional phase while the Green Gang were at the peak at that time.
