3 popular IPL captains who have justified their expensive price tags

The IPL has been a great platform for several uncapped cricketers to showcase their talents. Various cricketers have utilized the tournament wisely and gone on to become stars in the international arena.

The Twenty20 league has also seen bold decisions and innovative moves by intrepid skippers resulting in remarkable triumphs. The IPL has become a developing area for exceptional skippers to emerge.

There have been several million dollar players across all seasons of the Indian Premier League. While some have faltered, some have grabbed headlines on the field. Here are three popular captains who have justified their expensive price tags by leading their respective franchises to IPL titles over the years.

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#3 Gautam Gambhir (Kolkata Knight Riders)

In 2009, Gautam Gambhir began his IPL captaincy stint with Delhi Daredevils as an alternate option for Virender Sehwag. He was their full-time leader in the 2010 season.

Gambhir led the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to their first play-offs in 2011 before helping them win IPL titles in 2012 and 2014. In additional to his captaincy skills, his batting performances also burgeoned. The southpaw scored 592 runs at an outstanding strike-rate of 143.65 in the 2012 IPL.

Though Gambhir did not perform well with the bat in the 2014 season, his astute leadership was one of the main reasons for Kolkata's triumph.

Gambhir has scored 3037 runs in just seven seasons for KKR. He had been picked up by the franchise for a whopping INR 11.5 crores in the 2012 IPL Auction. The gritty left-hander is among KKR's highest salaried cricketers.

#2 Rohit Sharma (Mumbai Indians)

Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma became the captain for Mumbai Indians after Ricky Ponting gave up his position in the 2013 season. The change in captaincy had a great effect on MI’s fortunes as they moved on to clinch their maiden title.

Rohit has been one of the best skippers in the IPL. The Indian opening batsman has led MI to three titles. The swashbuckling cricketer also played his part in the rise of talented cricketers like Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya.

Rohit is the third leading run-scorer in IPL history behind Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina. He has scored 4496 runs at an average of 31.96. Game-changing batting performances and splendid leadership skills made Mumbai retain him as their captain for INR 15 crores in 2018.

#1 MS Dhoni (Chennai Super Kings)

MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni is the most prominent face of CSK. Under his composed captaincy, they have become the most consistent team in IPL history. He is a master tactician on the field, swift behind the stumps and can also be dangerous with the bat in the death overs.

Dhoni has taken CSK to the playoffs in all the seasons that they have played. The franchise has featured in four finals and won three of them.

The veteran has helped the likes of Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin and Suresh Raina create a name for themselves. Dhoni's encouraging advice from behind the wickets are an upgrade for a bowler's fortunes. With the bat, he has been a great finisher for Chennai Super Kings over the years.

In 2018 IPL, CSK returned to the fold after serving a couple of years of suspension. They retained Dhoni for INR 15 crores.