Rajat Patidar Removed, Shreyas Iyer Axed! Best IPL Captain Award 2026 Given To This Indian Star

Mohammad Kaif names his best IPL 2026 captain [Source: AFP, AP]

The IPL 2026 season is at its closing stages, and three of the four knockout spots have already been comfortably secured by Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Gujarat Titans and Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Heading into the season, the 2025 finalist captains, Shreyas Iyer and Rajat Patidar, were touted as the best captains in the competition and tipped to reach the end stages again.

However, with the league stage about to end, perceptions have changed, and a former India player, who is a prominent broadcaster, has snubbed the duo and named his best captains of the season.

Former IPL winner names his best captain of IPL 2026

Despite the plaudits for Shreyas Iyer for going undefeated in 7 matches of the season, the second half of the league phase saw the Punjab Kings capitulating. Due to 6 losses on the bounce, they have now dropped from number 1 to 5 on the table and are staring at an early exit.

RCB’s Rajat Patidar has lived up to his reputation and once again taken the team to the playoffs, with a high probability of finishing in Qualifier 1 places. However, the IPL 2008 winner with the Rajasthan Royals, Mohammad Kaif, has openly shared his observation, naming Gujarat Titans’ Shubman Gill as his best captain of the season.

Starting the discussion on his Twitter (X) account, he pointed out how efficient the bowlers have been under Gill throughout the season. He noted that RCB, PBKS, SRH, RR and CSK have all been bowled out against GT this season, which is a huge testament to how Gill has used his resources.

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Furthermore, he praised Gill’s impeccable batting, putting on 616 runs in 13 innings at a strike rate of 161.67 and is only second to his opening partner Sai Sudharsan on the Orange Cap leaderboard.

Mohammad Kaif

@MohammadKaif

For me Shubman Gill is this IPL's best captain. The sign of a great captain is how he uses his bowlers. His bowlers have taken 108 wickets in 14 games. RCB, PK, SRH, RR, CSK have been dismissed by GT bowlers, Gill asks his bowlers to stick to Test match line and length. Gill

Gujarat Titans make consecutive playoffs under Gill

Since GT’s introduction to the IPL in 2022, they won their inaugural season under Hardik Pandya and backed it up with another run to the final in 2023. Shubman Gill also scored a whopping 890 runs in the 2023 season, including three centuries and four fifties to clinch the Orange Cap.

Then, as Hardik Pandya left the franchise in the subsequent year to return to the Mumbai Indians, Gill was named captain, but the team finished 8th on the table.

However, they backed Gill to do the job well, and he did not disappoint. In 2025, they finished 3rd — only 1 point behind the league leaders and have now more or less achieved the Qualifier 1 place with 18 points in 14 matches. If RCB beats SRH on Friday, the number 2 will be sealed for them.

Gill for all-format captaincy?

Since the successful 2025 season with GT, Shubman Gill’s stock as a leader has risen significantly as he was given India’s Test and ODI captaincy, replacing Rohit Sharma. He was also given the T20I vice-captaincy briefly, but was left out of the T20 World Cup squad due to his batting tempo in T20Is.

However, as he ended the league phase with a strike rate of 161.67 with over 600 runs again, he could be among the names to replace Suryakumar Yadav as the next captain. While it is a far-fetched and there would be names ahead of him, but considering he is the captain in two formats, the possibility of this happening cannot be ruled out.

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