The upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has begun. Apart from the already existing eight teams, two new franchises -- Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans -- will also battle it out for the IPL trophy. A cricket captain is the team's leader both on and off the field. The IPL is no exception. There have been several IPL captains over the years, some of them have been highly successful and others have not.
Know the Oldest to Youngest Captains’ of all 10 franchises
1. Faf du Plessis (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
After Virat Kohli stepped down as captain last season, RCB roped in du Plessis at the auction, and was later revealed as the captain of the team for the upcoming season. Du Plessis is 37 years old. He is a South African professional cricketer and former captain of the South Africa national cricket team. He is considered one of the best fielders in the world.
2. Rohit Sharma (Mumbai Indians)
Rohit Sharma will be leading Mumbai Indians (MI) for the 10th consecutive season. He is 34 years old. Sharma has been one of the most successful players in the IPL as captain since 2013 of the Mumbai Indians, who have won the tournament five times under his leadership. He is currently (March 2022) one of six players who have scored 5,000 career runs in the competition.
3. Ravindra Jadeja (Chennai Super Kings)
MS Dhoni stepped down as CSK captain and handed over the captaincy to Ravinder Jadeja, 33-year-old cricketer. He is considered to be one of the greatest fielders in recent times. Ravindra Jadeja was selected by the Rajasthan Royals for the inaugural season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008 and played an important role in their victory.
4. Kane Williamson (SunRisers Hyderabad)
In February 2015 Williamson signed for Indian Premier League side Sunrisers Hyderabad. He played for the side in the 2016 season, winning the title, and was retained for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. He captained the side in 2018, replacing David Warner. He is 31 years old. Ian Chappell and Martin Crowe have ranked Williamson among the top four or five Test cricket batsmen, along with Joe Root, Steve Smith, and Virat Kohli of the current era.
5. Mayank Agarwal (Punjab Kings)
Mayank Agarwal is an Indian international cricketer who plays as a right-handed top-order batter. He is 31 years old. Mayank Agarwal is one of the three players who will make his IPL captaincy debut this season. He will replace KL Rahul as Punjab Kings captain.
6. KL Rahul (Lucknow Super Giants)
29-year-old, KL Rahul is the current vice-captain of the India national cricket team in all formats. Rahul made his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) as a wicket-keeper batsman during the 2013 competition. Prior to the 2022 season, Rahul parted ways with the Punjab Kings and was drafted by Lucknow Super Giants as their captain for INR 17Cr making him the joint highest-paid cricketer in the Indian Premier League alongside Virat Kohli.
7. Hardik Pandya (Gujarat Titans)
Hardik Pandya is another player who will make his IPL captaincy debut this season. He is 28 years old, an all-rounder who bats right-handed and bowls right-arm fast-medium. Ahead of IPL 2022 mega auction, Pandya was released by Mumbai Indians and was drafted by the new Ahmedabad franchise Gujarat Titans as their captain.
8. Sanju Samson (Rajasthan Royals)
Sanju Samson is a right-handed top-order batter and wicketkeeper. 27 years old, Sanju made his IPL debut for Rajasthan against Kings XI Punjab on 14 April 2013 after the regular wicket-keeper Dishant Yagnik failed to recover from an injury. In November 2021, he was retained by Rajasthan Royals ahead of the 2022 Indian Premier League.
9. Shreyas Iyer (Kolkata Knight Riders)
Shreyas Iyer will lead KKR in the upcoming season of the IPL. He is 27 years old. In the 2022 IPL Auction, Iyer was bought by the Kolkata Knight Riders for ₹ 12.25 crores. He was also named as the team's captain.
10. Rishabh Pant (Delhi Capitals)
24 years old, Rishabh Pant is the youngest captain in IPL 2022. Pant was purchased by the Delhi Daredevils ahead of the 2016 Indian Premier League on the same day he scored a century for India U-19 team in the 2016 Under-19 Cricket World Cup. In March 2021, Pant was named the captain of the Delhi Capitals for the 2021 Indian Premier League.