List of India national cricket captains

This is the list of captains of Indian cricket team who have lead the team in at least one international cricket match. A captain is the appointed leader of the team, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of the other players. As in other sports, the captain is usually experienced and has good communication skills and is likely to be one of the most regular members of the team, as the captain is responsible for the team selection. Before the starting of the game in cricket, the captains toss which decides which team will bat first. During the match the captain decides the team's batting order, who will bowl each over, and where each fielder will be positioned.

Cricket was introduced to the Indian subcontinent by the English in the 17th and 18th centuries. Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the national governing body of cricket in India. The BCCI was established on 1 December 1928 at Madras and joined the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1926 which later became the International Cricket Council. The captains of the national teams are appointed by BCCI and the India national cricket team selectors appointed by BCCI choose the other players for the national teams.

On 25 June 1932, India became the sixth nation to play test cricket and the men's cricket team was led by C. K. Nayudu against England at Lord's. Nayudu led India in the first international cricket match held in India on 15 December 1933 when Gymkhana Ground in Bombay hosted the only match during England's tour of India. Vijay Hazare led India to its first win in fifth test of home series against England on 10 February 1952 at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Madras. Ajit Wadekar led India in its first ever ODI on 13 July 1974 at Leeds against England. On 1 December 2006, Virender Sehwag captained India in its first T20 International against South Africa at Johannesberg.

Shantha Rangaswamy led the women's team in their first women's test match against West Indies at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium at Bangalore on 31 October 1976. Diana Edulji led India in its first WODI during the 1978 Women's Cricket World Cup against England on 1 January 1978 at Eden Gardens in Calcutta. Mithali Raj captained India in the first WT20I on 5 August 2006 against England at Derby.

Krishnamachari Srikkanth was the captain for the first youth test for India U-19 team against Pakistan U-19 which began on 20 January 1979 at Wankhede Stadium in Bombay while Ravi Shastri captained India U-19 in the first youth ODI in 1981 against England U-19.

Harmanpreet Kaur is current captain of the women's team in all formats and Rohit Sharma is current captain of men's team in Tests and ODIs.

Test
This is a list of cricketers who have captained the Indian men's cricket team for at least one Test match. A dagger (†) indicates that the player captained at least one Test in the series as a stand-in for the appointed captain or was appointed by the home authority for a proportion in a series.

36 players have captained India in men's test matches, of which Virat Kohli is the most successful with 40 wins.

Last updated:18 February 2024

ODI
This is a list of cricketers who have captained the Indian men's cricket team for at least one ODI. 27 players have captained the Indian men's team in ODIs of which MS Dhoni is the most successful captain of men's cricket team with 110 wins. Kapil Dev captained India to win in the 1983 Cricket World Cup, the first ever ICC trophy and later, India won the 2011 Cricket World Cup under the captaincy of Dhoni.

Last updated:21 December 2023

T20I
This is a list of cricketers who have captained the Indian men's cricket team for at least one Twenty 20 International. 14 players have captained India in men's T20Is, of which Rohit Sharma is the most successful with 49 wins. India won the 2007 World T20, the inaugural T20 World Cup under the captaincy of Dhoni.

Last updated:10 June 2024

WTest
This is a list of cricketers who have captained the Indian women's cricket team for at least one women's Test match. Mithali Raj and Harmanpreet Kaur are the most successful test captains of Indian women's cricket team with three wins each.

Last updated: 1 July 2024

WODI
This is a list of cricketers who have captained the Indian women's cricket team for at least one women's one-day international. Mithali Raj is the most successful WODI captain of Indian women's cricket team with 89 wins.

Last updated: 23 June 2024

WT20I
This is a list of cricketers who have captained the Indian women's cricket team for at least one Twenty 20 International. Harmanpreet Kaur is the most successful WT20I captain of Indian women's cricket team with 65 wins.

Last updated: 9 July 2024

Youth test
This is a list of cricketers whose have captained the Indian Men's Under-19 cricket team for at least one under-19 Test match. Four men, Srikkanth, Shastri, Dravid and Kohli have gone on to captain the senior side.

Last updated:2019

Youth ODI
This is a list of cricketers who have captained the Indian men's U-19 cricket team for at least one youth ODI.

Last updated:December 2023