Top 5 captains who mastered mind games

Sep 9, 2016 at 11:54 AM

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Top 5 captains who mastered mind games

Mind games in cricket has been used as a vital weapon by the players  to put the opposition under psychological pressure. Having a calm and composed mind in cricket is very important in any game and its value increases by leaps and bounds in cricket as a lapse in concentration even for a fraction of a second can change the outcome of the match. Over the years we have witnessed some great captains who not only led their team from the front on the field but also mastered the art of mind games even before entering the cricket field.

So here we are presenting to you five such captains who put the opposition under pressure even before the start of the game:

5. Mahendra Singh Dhoni:

Image result for ms dhoni mind games

While he is known as someone who rarely shows emotions on the cricket field, he was not a novice when it came to playing mind games. A calm and composed man, Dhoni always had the opposition camp worried with his mind games. In 2012, he was even accused by legendary Australian spinner Shane Warne for playing mind games after he publicly demanded rank turners for the Test match against Aussies to put the visitors under immense pressure.

4. Graeme Smith:

Image result for graeme smith

One of the most successful skippers of all time, the former South Africa captain was also an expert at playing mind games. The only captain to lead a team in over 100 Tests, Smith put the opposition under pressure several times with his mind games. One incident happened during the 2011 50-overs World Cup when he took a dig at the Indian team. India failed to win a match against England after posting a massive 338 as the game ended in a tie. After the match ended, Smith tweeted:” GraemeSmith49 Reckon this is the last time India will play on a wicket that doesn’t spin in this world cup….what you think??;-)” With the Proteas set to play the Indian team in their next match, the comment might have made a difference as India lost the match.

One another instance of a mind game happened when the former England skipper Andrew Strauss abstained from T20 cricket. In reply Smith said: “It does surprise me. Looking at their lineup the other night (referring to a match when England were dismissed in only 17.3 overs in the defeat to South Africa A), it’s difficult to understand why.”

3. Ricky Ponting:

Image result for ricky ponting's mind games during his playing days

Undoubtedly the most celebrated captain of all time, Ponting was a master when it came to playing mind games. He was known to create unrest in the opposition camp with his verbal attacks during his playing days and his success on the cricket field is a proof that he succeeded to a certain extent in pressurising the opposition.

2. Sourav Ganguly:

Image result for sourav ganguly

The captain who played a very important role in reviving the fortunes of Indian cricket after the shameful batting scandal in the early 2000s. Ganguly taught the young Indian team to stare down the opposition. Before him, Indian players believed in answering the opposition with their performances but the attitude completely changed after Ganguly took charge of the team. His mind games came to the fore during the historic 2001-02 home series against Australia that India won 2-1 to cut short the record run of Test wins by the mighty Aussies. The former Indian skipper  would repeatedly walk out late for the toss to try and get under the skin of his Australian counterpart Steve Waugh. And one can say that it was successful as the Indian team after losing the first game badly won the next two in style.

1.Steve Waugh:

Image result for steve waugh mind games

Arguably the greatest exponent of mind games, former Australian skipper Steve Waugh put the opposition under immense pressure with his verbal volleys. While there is no denying the fact the Australian team led by Waugh was full of quality but another factor that helped them to dominate the game was their mind games and sledging.

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