David Warner has been named the new captain of Delhi Capitals for the upcoming 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season, replacing Rishabh Pant who was ruled out due to a fatal car crash in December 2022. Warner, a former IPL-winning captain, led Sunrisers Hyderabad to their first-ever championship in 2016 and the Delhi franchise owners will be hoping he can lead their team to their maiden title as well.
Despite having some of the greatest names in world cricket play for the franchise over the years, Delhi Capitals (formerly Delhi Daredevils) have never won the IPL trophy. Only three out of the 12 players who have captained the team have a win percentage of over 50%, namely Virender Sehwag, Shreyas Iyer, and Rishabh Pant.
David Warner himself captained Delhi in two matches of the 2013 season, but lost both of them. In addition, a few other great players have failed to make a mark as Delhi Capitals’ captain. Here are three such names:
1) James Hopes – Won 0 out of 3 matches as Delhi Capitals captain
Former Australian all-rounder James Hopes was appointed as Delhi’s new captain in the final phase of the 2011 season. However, he could not lead the team to a single win in their remaining matches, losing to Chennai Super Kings and Punjab Kings, while their match against Pune Warriors was abandoned.
2) Kevin Pietersen – Won 2 out of 8 matches as Delhi Capitals captain
Former England captain Kevin Pietersen was appointed as Delhi’s captain in the 2014 season. However, he could only win two out of eight matches in charge, with the team finishing seventh in the league.
3) Mahela Jayawardene – Won 4 out of 16 matches as Delhi Capitals captain
Former Sri Lankan cricketer Mahela Jayawardene, one of the best captains in the world during his playing days, was appointed as Delhi’s vice-captain in 2012. In the absence of regular captain Sehwag, he led the team in a couple of matches that season. He was then appointed as the full-time skipper in 2013 but could only manage four wins in 16 matches across two seasons, with Delhi losing 11 games and one ending in no result.