4. Ricky Ponting
Australian squad under the leadership of Ricky Ponting in the period when they were at the peak of their dominance in world cricket. He is also one of the most succesful captains of Australia till date. Kangaroos won the title in back to back editions under his leadership in 2006 and 2009. Australia wandered to their first Champions Trophy win in 2006 in India when they outplayed West Indies in a low-scoring final by 8 wickets. The invincible bowling attack of Bracken, Lee, Mcgrath and the aggressive field settings from Ponting didn’t give any chance to the Caribbean to come back into the game.
In 2009 edition of Champions Trophy, Ricky Ponting-led Australian Team were the defending champions. But many believed they will fail to defend their title as the legends of the team had retired. But there was one common thread and that was the leader of the side – Ricky Ponting. He led his team from the front by scoring a match-winning century himself in the semi-final against England. Eventually, Australia beat New Zealand in the final to become the first team to defend the title.
5. MS Dhoni
The young Indian team under the leadership of MS Dhoni won the Champions Trophy in 2013 edition. Dhoni and co. started their journey by beating one of the favorites – South Africa. The decision from one of teh most successful captains of India to send Rohit Sharma to open the batting was a master stroke.
India further went on to beat West Indies, Pakistan and Sri Lanka to set up the title clash against the hosts England. Once again the memories of 2002 started hanging around the minds of the fans and players when the final was delayed due to the merciless rain. But as the rain stopped, India conquested over the hosts in a 20-over affair in which England looked favorites right through.
Dhoni’s decision to give the ball to Ishant Sharma against all the odds again proved crucial and turned the game in India’s favor. India won the Champions Trophy after 11 years and Dhoni became the first captain ever to win all the three coveted ICC events.
