Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has spoken in high praise of Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy, discussing his position among all-time great IPL captains.
Iyer has captained three teams in the IPL. He was appointed skipper of the Delhi Capitals in 2018, who he led to the finals in 2020. He was then made captain of the Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of the 2022 season and led them to the title in 2024. He now captains the Punjab Kings, whom he led to the finals in his debut season with the team in 2025. The Kings have started the 2026 season brilliantly, sitting at the top of the table.
Pathan mentioned that Iyer’s credibility is boosted by the fact that he has led multiple teams to the finals. The former all-rounder believes that if the Mumbai-born leads PBKS to the trophy, it would increase his credibility as one of the greatest IPL captains of all time, adding him to the annals where MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, and Gautam Gambhir are currently.
“On that list of MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir, I feel Shreyas Iyer has to be right up there among the best captains. It is not easy to take three different franchises to the finals. Each franchise is different, their culture, setup and their mindset is completely different. To adjust to those things and then lead the way forward is not easy. No one has ever done it.
MS Dhoni won all five trophies with CSK, and it is not that he has not played for any other franchise. Similarly, Rohit Sharma has won all his trophies as Captain with MI, and Gautam Gambhir did it for KKR in those two seasons. But here you have Shreyas Iyer, who has taken three franchises to the final and won it with KKR. One more trophy; if he wins it with Punjab, he will surpass everyone,” Pathan said via JioStar.
Apart from being a terrific leader on the field, the PBKS captain has also been brilliant for his franchise with the bat. He has scored 328 runs in 2026 already at a strike rate of 165.66, including four half-centuries. He was their best batter in 2025 as well, scoring 604 runs at a whopping strike rate of 175.07. He has scored 4,059 runs in 143 IPL matches.
