Top 5 players with most number of ODI matches as a captain

MS Dhoni stunned the whole cricketing fraternity after he walked out for the toss in today's Asia Cup fixture against Afghanistan. He donned his 200th ODI cap as a captain. Having captained India in 200 ODI games, Dhoni inked his name in the book of captaincy records.

MS Dhoni captained India after almost 696 days, which is close to two years. Dhoni's last match as a captain was against New Zealand in October 2016. Besides, he also became one of the very few captains to achieve the feat of 200 ODI matches as a captain.

Thus, in this feature, we will have a look at top five players with the most number of matches as an ODI captain.

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#5 Allan Border (Australia) - 178 ODI matches

Allan Border, the Australian great, holds the fifth place on the list. It was Allan Border who transformed Australians into one of the most successful teams in the history of cricket. Border's arrival on the Australian cricket scene came when there was turbulence. His captaincy dragged Australia from the lowest decline and transformed them into the world champions.

Border has an unsullied captaincy record in ODIs. He captained Australia in 178 ODI matches and won 107 of them with an excellent winning percentage of 61.42. He also became the first Australian captain to win one of the most sought-after events in the history of cricket - the 50 over World Cup. In addition to that, he was also the first captain to win 100 or more ODI matches as a captain.

#4 Arjuna Ranatunga (Sri Lanka) - 193 ODI matches

Arjuna Ranatunga, the Sri Lankan legend, takes the fourth spot on the list of most matches as a captain in ODIs. Ranatunga led Sri Lanka to their greatest cricketing triumph - the 1996 World Cup. With an excellent captaincy record up against his sleeve, Arjuna remains the most successful Sri Lankan captain ever in the history of ODI cricket. His captaincy was the reason for Sri Lanka's rapid rise in cricket, especially in ODIs.

Having captained Sri Lanka in 193 ODI games, Arjuna won 89 of them with a winning percentage of 48.37. Besides, thus far, he remains only the third Asian captain to lead his team in 150 or more ODI games.

#3 MS Dhoni (India) - 200* ODI matches

You speak of any captaincy record in the world, and one man will always have a place on the list - MS Dhoni. How good has MS been as a captain? Simply brilliant. Right? Well, to be more factual, MS Dhoni is the only captain in this entire world to have all the three major ICC trophies in his cabinet - 2007 T20 World Cup, 2011 ODI World Cup, and 2013 Champions Trophy.

MS Dhoni had stepped down from the captaincy way back in 2017. But, surprises are always on the cards whenever MS Dhoni is on the field. One such episode of surprise or maybe shock (for the haters) was today when MS Dhoni stepped out for the toss for the game against Afghanistan. Possibly, it was the loudest cheers that Dubai stadium would have ever witnessed. With this, MS Dhoni reached the golden mark of 200 ODI matches as a captain.

MS Dhoni also became the only first Asian captain and third overall to have captained his ODI side in 200 or more matches. Thus, with 110 wins, MS is the most successful captain that India ever had in ODIs.

#2 Stephen Fleming (New Zealand) - 218 ODI matches

Second on the list is the New Zealand great, Stephen Fleming. Stephen, like Dhoni, was known for his astute mind and excellent game sense. He remains the greatest captain ever that New Zealand ever had in its history of cricket.

A sound tactician with tactical brilliance, Stephen led a varied set of players into an assemblage who could strike above their ability in the international arena. He captained New Zealand for record 218 ODI matches out of which he triumphed in 98 games with a winning percentage of 48.04. Besides, reading the opposition was one of the most acclaimed strategies of Stephen Fleming as a captain in ODI cricket.

#1 Ricky Ponting (Australian) - 230 ODI matches

The top spot on the list goes to none other than Ricky Ponting - the greatest Australian captain ever. The biggest highlight of Ponting was his searing appetite to win matches, and at times the furor did lead to some repellent episodes but what glimmered through his career was the sheer desire to be triumphant. Besides, he also remains the only second captain after Clive Lloyd in the history of cricket to win as many as two World Cups as a captain.

He captained in 230 ODI games - 229 ODI games as an Australian captain and one ODI match as an ICC XI captain. Out of 230 ODI matches, Ricky ended up on the winning side on 165 occasions (164 for Australia and one for ICC XI). Besides, he also has the second-best winning percentage (76.14) as an ODI captain after Virat Kohli who currently enjoys a winning percentage of 76.47 in ODIs.