Gautam Gambhir not first to quit as captain of an IPL team, Ricky Ponting did it too

Gautam Gambhir became the first captain in IPL 2018 to step down due to poor performance. Gambhir resigned as Delhi Daredevils captain to hand over the captaincy to Shreyas Iyer

Gautam Gambhir on Wednesday stepped down as captain of Indian Premier League team Delhi Daredevils. The former Indian batsman, who led Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL crown twice, said he quit due to poor form.

Gautam Gambhir stepped down as captain of Delhi Daredevils after performing poorly in IPL 2018. DD coach Ricky Ponting had also quit IPL captaincy after a poor run with Mumbai Indians.(Delhi Daredevils)

Rookie Indian batsman Shreyas Iyer was announced as the new skipper. Gambhir announced his decision alongside Delhi Daredevils coach Ricky Ponting. The former Australian captain had also quit captaincy after a string of poor scores for Mumbai Indians.

The 36-year-old Gambhir said he was not able to handle the captaincy pressure.

“The bell started ringing after the last game (against KXIP at Kotla) and it was time to take the call. My own performance has not been up to the mark. Maybe I was too desperate to turn things around,” Gambhir said.

“I was sitting alone and thinking, I couldn’t handle the pressure... I was not good enough and that is all,” he added.

Gautam Gambhir is not a unique case. IPL has several instances when a captain stepped down when the desired results didn’t come. Here are some instances:

Year: 2008

Team: Deccan Chargers

Who replaced whom: Adam Gilchrist replaced VVS Laxman

Result: Deccan Chargers finished last

Year: 2009

Team: Royal Challengers Bangalore

Who replaced whom: Anil Kumble replaced Kevin Pietersen

Result: Royal Challengers Bangalore reached final and lost

Year: 2012

Team: Royal Challengers Bangalore

Who replaced whom: Virat Kohli replaced Daniel Vettori

Result: Royal Challengers Bangalore finished fifth

Year: 2012

Team: Deccan Chargers

Who replaced whom: Cameron White replaced Kumar Sangakkara

Result: Deccan Chargers finished ninth

Year: 2013

Team: Mumbai Indians

Who replaced whom: Rohit Sharma replaced Ricky Ponting

Result: Mumbai Indians won title

Year: 2014

Team: Sunrisers Hyderabad

Who replaced whom: Darren Sammy replaced Shikhar Dhawan

Result: Sunrisers Hyderabad finished sixth

Year: 2015

Team: Rajasthan Royals

Who replaced whom: Steve Smith replaced Shane Watson

Result: Rajasthan Royals lost in Eliminator

Year: 2016

Team: Kings XI Punjab

Who replaced whom: Murali Vijay replaced David Miller

Result: Kings XI Punjab finished eighth and last