The selection of a new captain in cricket is perhaps the most debated topic every time a change at the helm is ushered in. His international career leading up to that moment is reviewed and his aggregates with bat and ball come under the microscope. His individual record notwithstanding, his ability to lead the side is scrutinised as well.
Has he led at the domestic level? Can he command the respect of his peers? Can he keep a cool head under pressure? These are just some of the several questions that critics raise. While the cynics play “devil’s advocate”, it’s comes down to the captain elect to prove his detractors wrong and deliver on the field.
Through the course of ODI history, batsmen seem to have enjoyed the rub of the green as far as preference for captaincy is concerned. Also, it’s highly unlikely that a rookie is picked to lead a side that has “seniors” in it. Therefore, when either of these two scenarios play out and the captain elect is deemed out of the ordinary, a furore normally ensues.
We take a look at five cricketers that were deemed as unusual options for ODI captain, but managed to post a reasonable success rate.
#5 Tillakaratne Dilshan
The right-handed batsman from Kalutra is one of the most naturally gifted cricketers to emerge from the island nation. Constantly attacking and looking to dominate at the top of the order, Dilshan carved a niche for himself as an effervescent opening batsman. While he will perhaps be best remembered for the “Dilscoop”, his superlative ODI career that spanned 327 ODIs, make him a Sri Lankan icon.
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His vast international experience notwithstanding, Dilshan was never quite considered as captain material amidst the other stalwarts in the side. So it was more an afterthought when in 2011, he was handed the reins after Kumar Sangakkara resigned. Although, Dilshan’s reign lasted under a year, he did manage to win 11 of the 26 ODIs that he led for Sri Lanka with a win rate of 42%.
#4 Shoaib Malik
From the time a young Malik turned the ball a mile in the Lomard U-15 World Cup in England, he was earmarked as an off-spinner to wear the senior national colors at some stage. As he developed over the years, he added batting to his repertoire of cricketing skills. Slowly but surely, he mutated into a batting all-rounder for Pakistan and was being sent up the batting order. Despite mixed outings with the bat, Malik did just about enough every time and eventually caught the late Bob Woolmer’s attention with his acumen for the game.
When handed the captaincy, Malik was faced with innumerable challenges. That said, in the 36 ODI’s that he led, Pakistani registered 24 wins to give him a formidable win rate of 66%.
#3 Lee Germon
It was in the middle of 1994-95 that a change was brewing in New Zealand cricket. Glenn Turner was appointed coach and as he began scouting for a new skipper, he eyes fell on Lee Germon. Despite not having played Test match cricket in the past, Germon had led Canterbury in first-class cricket. Adam Parore was converted into a specialist batsman and a place was created for Germon to come in and take charge of the side – something that’s seldom seen in international cricket.
The Kiwi most famously led his country to the quarter-finals in the 1996 ICC Cricket World Cup in India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. He displayed stellar form through the event and teamed up with Chris Harris in the quarter-finals against Australia. While the former hammered a memorable 130, Germon stroked a vital 89 coming in at No.3.
In the 36 ODIs that Lee Germon led, his side won 15 and tied 2 matches to hand him a win record of 44%.
#2 Bob Willis
All of 6ft 6ins and running in to bowl at an angle with his brown hair swaying in the air, Bob Willis was the pride of the English fast-bowling department for several years. At 26, he required operations on his knees and he bowled with constant pain thereafter. Despite the pain, he trudged along to pick up 325 wickets from 90 Test matches. A lesser know fact however, is that the the fast-bowler also led England in ODIs.
For a period between 1978 and 1984, Willis led England as a stand-in captain in 29 ODIs and won 16 of those. With a respectable win rate of 55%, he certainly is one of those unusual choices for captain who ended with a rather successful record.
#1 George Bailey
Bailey is the great-great-grandson of George Herbert Bailey, who was part of Australia's 1878 touring squad to England. History notwithstanding, the Tasmanian’s rise in international cricket has been meteoric. When he was handed the reins of the Australian T20 side to replace Cameron White, Bailey became the first man since Dave Gregory in the first Test match in 1877 to be named captain in his debut for Australia in any format.
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Soon enough, Bailey worked his way into the national side across all three formats and captained their ODI side. In ODI cricket, he was particularly destructive as an attacking middle-order batsman. 2013 was particularly a strong ODI year for him and at his peak, he was ranked the No.2 ODI batsman in the world.
Bailey, while constantly sporting a smile on his face, led Australia in 29 ODI matches and won 16 of those. With a win rate of 61%, Bailey took a decade of domestic experience and turned it into a successful stint as skipper of the national side.
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