3 players who became India captain without captaining an IPL team

Not many players have captained Indian cricket team before leading a team in the IPL since the inception of the league.

Team India has seen many great leaders who led the country at the highest level and won many tournaments and matches. However, with the hectic schedule of the last couple years saw a number of players captain the Indian team across formats. Most recently, the BCCI appointed Ruturaj Gaikwad as India's captain for the upcoming Asian Games 2023 in China.

He will lead the Indian T20I side in the 19th edition of the Asian Games, which will take place between September 28 and October 8 while all the games will take place at the Zhejiang University of Technology Pingfeng Cricket Field. The Indian Premier League has also helped Indian cricket produce some great leaders. Meanwhile, there are three players who became India's captain, without captaining any IPL team since the inception of IPL.

Here are three Indians who became India's captain without leading an IPL franchise:

Ruturaj Gaikwad - Asian Games 2023:

The BCCI made a big call by sending India's men's cricket team to the Asian Games 2023 for the first time. Adding to that, they gave Ruturaj Gaikwad the role of captain. It will be a totally new role for Gaikwad, as he has never captained any IPL team. He has been part of the Chennai Super Kings since the 2019 season and played until MS Dhoni. Gaikwad has led teams at the domestic level but not in any international competition. As per the rankings, India will directly play in the quarterfinals of the upcoming Asian Games 2023.

Jasprit Bumrah - Only second pacer to lead India in Test Cricket:

Jasprit Bumrah made his IPL debut in 2013 for the Mumbai Indians. Since then, he has been part of the team, playing under Rohit Sharma and being one of the main reasons that MI won five titles. Bumrah's consistent performance helped him get his maiden call to India in 2016, and since then, he has become a mainstay of the Indian bowling lineup across formats. In 2022, Bumrah went on to become only the second pacer after Kapil Dev to lead the team in Test Cricket. He led India in the fifth and final rescheduled test against England at Edgbaston in the absence of Rohit Sharma. Bumrah hasn't led any IPL team but has led India in his career.

Ajinkya Rahane - India vs Zimbabwe in 2015:

Many will say that Ajinkya Rahane has already led India in ODIs and Tests, including the 2021 Border-Gavaskar Trophy win in the absence of Virat Kohli, and also led the Rising Pune Supergiants and Rajasthan Royals, so how can he feature on this list? Notably, Rahane became the captain of the Indian team in 2015 during a three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe, which India won 3-0. Then he followed with a 1-1 T20I series against the same opposition. But his IPL captaincy debut for RPS came in the 2017 season, when he led the Rising Pune Supergiant in the absence of Steven Smith. Meanwhile, in 2018, he became the full-time captain of RR.