Captaincy race between Shreyas and SanjuImage Credit source: PTI
Debates regarding selection have always been going on in Indian cricket. Before every new series or tournament, a discussion starts about who should be selected and who should be dropped. This debate takes place even after selection. But overshadowing all this is the captaincy debate, which whenever it starts, deep differences are seen on it. At present, this is the situation regarding the captaincy of the Indian T20 team, for which the names of Shreyas Iyer and Sanju Samson have emerged as two big contenders. But who is the better captain among the two?
This is a question which everyone will try to answer in their own way. There are some arguments for and against both. But the most important thing in this can prove to be the performance while being captain in IPL. This is because Iyer and Samson Have captained in IPL for a long time and both have got decent success. But who has the upper hand in this matter? We understand this from IPL records only.
Strong performance under the captaincy of Shreyas
First of all let’s talk about Shreyas Iyer. Right-handed star batsman Shreyas Iyer is currently the captain of Punjab Kings, where he is in his second consecutive season. But Iyer has been captaining the IPL continuously since 2018 and has achieved a lot of success. Iyer has captained in 97 matches so far, in which his team has won 54 matches and lost 38, while 3 matches have been inconclusive. Overall, Iyer has a record of 58.51 percent win, which is the second best among those who have captained more than 50 matches in IPL history.
But not only this, Iyer has also won the title while captaining Kolkata Knight Riders, while taking Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings to the finals. If this is not enough, then let us tell you that under his captaincy, Mumbai also won the title of Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy in 2024.
Samson’s captaincy record in IPL
As far as Sanju Samson is concerned, this star batsman, who is opening for Chennai Super Kings, is away from captaincy in IPL 2026. But Sanju has captained Rajasthan Royals for 5 consecutive seasons (2021 to 2025) and has brought considerable success to the team. Out of 67 matches played under his captaincy, Rajasthan won 33 matches, while it lost 32. Only one match was inconclusive. Under the captaincy of Samson, Rajasthan played the final of the 2022 IPL, which was the first final of this franchise since 2008. However the team had to face defeat.
Still Samson has the upper hand
Now the statistics show that Iyer is a better option as a captain, who has proved himself by winning titles. Whereas Samson is behind him in this matter. But there is one very important aspect, which is in favor of Samson. Actually, Samson has been a part of Team India and has been playing continuously for the last two and a half years. He played a big role in making the team T20 World Champion. On the other hand, Iyer has been out of the Indian T20 team for the last three years, due to which the first challenge before him is to make a comeback in the team. In such a situation, Samson can win on this basis.
