In any team, a captain is the most influential player that every player looks up to. A great captain in cricket is judged with how many ICC trophies he has under his belt. ICC events whether it is the 50 overs World Cup, T20 World cup or the Champions trophy they are pinnacle events in cricket. The likes of MS Dhoni, Imran Khan, Ricky Ponting are regarded as great captains as they led their country to world cup triumphs. However, there are a few great captains who failed to win any ICC trophy.
An ICC trophy separates the good captains from the great captains in Cricket. We have seen numerous great captains that unfortunately failed to win any ICC trophy as skipper. They might have had a great overall record as a leader but still that iconic moment of lifting an ICC trophy remained unfulfilled.
Here is the list of 5 great captains who failed to win any ICC trophy:
5. Virat Kohli
Well, Virat Kohli is without a shadow of a doubt a great leader for team India. Kohli since taking the reigns as skipper from MS Dhoni has made India a colossal in international Cricket. But one thing that he till now hasn’t done is win an ICC trophy as captain. Make no mistake he still has chances to win it but till now, even Kohli would have loved an ICC trophy. He came close on two occasions first in the 2017 champions trophy and then last year in the world cup in England.
In the champions trophy final, a red hot Pakistan surprised India and humbled them in a one-sided final. Whereas in the world cup semis against New Zealand just a bad phase of 30 minutes at the start of Indian innings, cost them a place in the final. Kohli, the most successful Test captain of India will certainly hope to tick this major accomplishment soon.
4. Mahela Jayawardena
The next name in this list is of a great Sri Lankan player, Mahela Jayawardena. The stylish right-handed batsman did it all with the bat in hand for his side. But one thing Mahela failed to achieve was that elusive ICC trophy as captain. His best opportunity came in the 2007 World Cup when Sri Lanka reached the World Cup final in the Caribbean islands.
Mahela was leading his side with great distinction throughout the World Cup. But then in the final, Mahela and his side ran into the powerhouse Australian team. It was one-way traffic in the final as the Aussies lifted their third consecutive World Cup. Mahela would have wanted to win an ICC trophy as captain that eluded him in his career.
3. Wasim Akram
The Sultan of swing Wasim Akram made a name for himself in the 1992 World Cup final when Pakistan made history. He helped Pakistan lift their first-ever major trophy under the leadership of Imran Khan. In the later stages of the 1990s decade, Akram was named the captain of the Pakistan side. He was terrific and led Pakistan to numerous series win all over the world. Then came the 1999 World Cup in England.
It seemed Pakistan was on his way to win their second world cup this time with Akram being their skipper. But it wasn’t to be as Steve Waugh’s Australia demolished Pakistan and won the World Cup at Lord’s. Akram would have hoped that Pakistan could have played better on that day and he could have lifted that world cup trophy.
2. Graeme Smith
Arguably one of the greatest captain of all time and certainly South Africa’s best. After a horror in the 2003 World Cup, Graeme Smith was handed the captaincy at a very young age. Smith not only led from the front with the bat but also his leadership skills were top class.
After that, Smith won Test series in Australia, England and made South Africa the number 1 Test side. But one thing that he failed to do is lead his side in winning an ICC trophy. In 2007 South Africa lost the semis against Australia and in 2011 they lost the Quarterfinals to New Zealand. There is no denying the fact that Graeme Smith was a great captain but he would have also dreamed of winning a World Cup as skipper.
1. AB de Villiers
Coming in at the numero uno spot is an another South African the great AB de Villers. The freak with the bat in hand de Villiers couldn’t help South Africa in getting the monkey off their back by winning an ICC trophy. Before the 2015 World Cup, South Africa under the leadership of de Villiers, were one of the favourites to win. They had all bases covered with the former Proteas cricketer being at the peak of his powers both as batsman and skipper.
Then came the much-anticipated semis against one of the hosts New Zealand. South Africa once again choked when it mattered the most and lost a cliff hanger. The entire South African team including de Villiers were devastated and heartbroken after the loss. It wasn’t to be yet again as South Africa were knocked out of the World Cup. That loss hurt de Villiers a lot and in many of his interviews, he stated that he wished he could have changed the outcome of that match.