



Scoring more than 1000 runs in all three formats of cricket as a captain is a big achievement. Being a captain your responsibility doubles, as you have to provide support to your team by performing as an individual player and as a captain too. Recently we have seen Pakistan’s captain Babar Azam surpasses Kohli by making the fastest 1000 runs in ODIs. It took him only 13 innings to become the fastest batsman to make 1000 runs in ODIs. Now Babar Azam is holding the record of making the fastest 1000 runs in ODI followed by Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Kane Williamson, and Alister Cook. Babar Azam not only did it in ODIs but in T20Is as well. Right now, he is at the 2nd number in T20I after David Malan.
Scoring more than 1000 runs in white ball cricket is quite possible but the same can’t be said about test cricket.
Babar Azam may have made more than 1000 runs as a captain in white ball cricket but he has to do a lot more work to achieve the same in test cricket. We all know about Babar Azam’s ability, that he could achieve it with his superb form as well.
This article is focused on the captains who have scored more than 1000 runs in all three formats of cricket. It is surprising to see that Indian players are dominating in all three formats. So far, the former captains of Team India Virat Kohli and Mahendra Singh Dhoni achieved this milestone. New Zealand’s Kane Williamson is also part of the list who have scored more than 1000 runs as a captain for his team.
Captains who have scored more than 1000 runs in all formats
The first name which comes at 1st place is Virat Kohli or I say, King Kohli. He is the run machine of India. Kohli did captaincy of the Indian team after Mahendra Singh Dhoni for all three formats. His name is not on the list of most successful captains but still, during his captaincy, India reached to semi-finals of the 2019 world cup. He also led the team for the 2021 T20I world cup but unfortunately, India didn’t even reach to semi-finals. India lost its two crucial games back-to-back at the group stage against New Zealand and Pakistan. Kohli gave up on captaincy after that and now Rohit Sharma is the captain of the Indian team for all formats. During his captaincy, Virat Kohli was able to make more than 1000 for team India in all three formats.
Kohli made 1570 runs in T20I in 46 innings, 5864 runs in Tests, and 5449 runs in ODIs. His average in all three formats used to be above 50 but recently in T20I, it went down to 50 because of his bad form. Although India didn’t win any cup in Kohli’s captaincy, Virat Kohli is India’s most successful captain with an overall win percentage of 63.38. Under the aggressive skipper, India won 65 of 95 ODIs, 30 of 50 T20Is, and 39 of 66 Tests.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni former Indian skipper who is popular as the best finisher among cricket fans is in 2nd place. He is also known for his calmness during pressure situations. That’s why people call him to captain cool. He is the most successful Indian skipper who has won each ICC trophy which started from winning the 2007 T20I world cup. After winning the T20I world cup India won the 2011 ODI world cup as well. India also won the ICC Championship trophy in 2013 under Dhoni’s captaincy. His win percentage may not be the same as that of Virat Kohli, but India managed to win many cups during his time. Dhoni also managed to score more than 1000 runs in all three formats during his captaincy. He scored 1112 runs in T20I, 3454 runs in Test cricket, and 6641 runs in ODIs. He captained India from 2007 to 2018. One of the best finishers in the world who shaped the future of Indian cricket.
- Last but not least the New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson is in 3rd place. He is the first ever captain to win the World Test championship. Under his captaincy, New Zealand reached the final of the 2019 ODI world cup, and what a thrilling match it was. He is the most successful captain of New Zealand among the captains so far. He captained the New Zealand team from 2012 to 2020 in all formats and still, he is the captain of T20I and Test. His winning percentage as captain was 55.33. During his captaincy, he was able to score more than 1000 runs in all three formats of cricket. He scored 1599 runs in T20I, 3331 runs in Test, and 3446 in ODIs as a captain. What makes him special is the class of his batting and he handles pressure situations with ease. His smile after losing the final in the 2019 world cup says it all.
Conclusion
We saw three different personalities of cricket in this article. Virat Kohli is known for his aggression whereas Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Kane Williamson are known for their calmness. It was New Zealand that broke India’s dream to win the 2019 world cup. Nobody could forget about the run out of Dhoni which broke millions of dreams that day. India wasn’t facing a big target, but it was the brilliance of Kane Williamson which helped New Zealand to win the game. Kane Williamson was against two captains at that time but still, he managed to win the game.
This teaches us no matter what situation you are against patience is the key to success. Don’t lose your confidence and give up just focus on your effort and forget about the rest of the things. Winning and losing is part of life but what matter is, learning. If you are trying and failing, it means that you are progressing. I must suggest learning from mistakes and examples is the best way of learning.