3 successful international captains who failed to replicate their success while leading IPL teams

Mumbai Indians v Kolkata Knight Riders - IPL
Ganguly was unable to make a mark as a skipper in the T20 format

#3 Mahela Jayawardene

IPL 4: League Match Between Mumbai Indians and Kochi Tuskers Kerala
Unlike his international career, Mahela Jayawardene's IPL captaincy was not a success story

Mahela Jayawardene is considered to be one of the greatest captains in Sri Lankan Cricket history.

After the retirement of stalwarts such as Sanath Jayasuriya and Marvan Atapattu, Jayawardene ushered in a new era in Sri Lankan Cricket as Sri Lanka started putting up formidable performances across formats against top teams.

In his first assignment as Lankan skipper in 2006, Jayawardene led his team to a 1-1 draw in the Test series and an emphatic 5-0 whitewash in the subsequent ODI series on English soil.

Under his captaincy, Sri Lanka reached the final of the 2007 ODI World cup and 2009 World T20. With 18 Test victories, he is Sri Lanka's most successful Test captain and second most successful ODI captain after Arjuna Ranatunga.

However, despite his stupendous success at the international level, victories eluded him in the IPL. He was made the captain of the newly formed, now defunct Kochi Tuskers Kerala in 2011.

Jayawardene was appointed the captain of Delhi Daredevils in IPL 2013 after Virender Sehwag stepped down. DD experienced their worst ever IPL that season as they finished last on the points table with only 3 victories from 16 matches.

Earlier in 2011, he had led the now-defunct Kochi Tuskers Kerala which ended 8th out of the 10 teams.

Overall, he was the captain for 30 matches in his IPL career but managed only 10 victories. Jayawardene's IPL captaincy career was not as rosy an affair as his stint at the international stage.

Jayawardene's performances with the bat when he was the captain of his respective franchises failed to inspire confidence and his defensive approaches proved to be lackadaisical, as he constantly shuffled between opening the batting and one-down positions while leading Kochi Tuskers Kerala, which failed to give a settled look to the unit.


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