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Former Australia captain Aaron Finch has expressed his thoughts on which captains from IPL 2026 should continue to lead their teams into IPL 2027.
Finch was speaking to ESPNCricinfo and was asked whether each of the 10 teams should continue with the same captain next year. Predictably, Aaron Finch said that most of the captains of the teams doing well this year should continue into 2027.
Aaron Finch did not name replacements for most of the captains he said no to.
Aaron Finch delivers his verdict on all 10 IPL 2026 captains
1. Hardik Pandya
Pandya's tenure as captain has been the most controversial of all the captains in IPL 2026. Since joining MI in 2024, Pandya has led the franchise to a bottom-two finish in both 2024 and 2026. In 2025, he led MI to the playoffs, but even then, it had taken a resurgence.
In IPL 2026, Pandya has led MI in 9 matches and won just two of them. Aaron Finch said that Pandya shouldn't continue as captain, but did not name a replacement. "It just seems to be a little bit unsettling right now," he said.
2. Rishabh Pant
Pant became LSG's captain in 2025, but did not produce the desired results, either with the bat or as captain. In 2025, he led LSG to 7th place, while in 2026, they look all set to finish 10th.
Rishabh Pant's LSG were the first team to be knocked out of the playoffs race this year. They too have just 4 wins in 13 matches like MI.
Aaron Finch opined that Pant should not be the captain next year.
When asked about a replacement, he said, "There's Markram, there's Marsh, who are experienced international captains, but Rishabh's win-loss ratio at LSG is poor."
3. Shreyas Iyer
Iyer joined the Punjab Kings in 2025 as the second-most-expensive player in IPL history. That year, he took the team to the top of the points table and their first playoffs qualification in 11 years.
Ultimately, the team finished runners-up, but continued to impress in 2026. After 6 wins and a no-result in their first 7 matches, they slipped out of the playoffs race by losing 6 matches in a row.
The team that was on top of the points table at the halfway mark now needs to depend on other results to make the top four.
Aaron Finch, though, felt that Shreyas Iyer should continue leading PBKS.
4. Ajinkya Rahane
At the auction table, Rahane was almost an afterthought for KKR when he joined them in the mega auction for just Rs 1.5 crore in 2025.
But when the season came, Rahane was named captain of the then-defending champion Kolkata Knight Riders team. In 2025, that team finished 8th. In 2026, they had an even worse time at the start.
KKR started the season with 5 losses and a no-result in 6 matches before bouncing back with 6 wins in their last 7 matches. While they will need other results to go their way, the team that spent the first half winless is still in the playoffs race.
Aaron Finch, though, felt that KKR should look in a new direction. "I don't think so, they can go in a different direction in my opinion," he said. But once again, he did not explicitly name a replacement.
5. Ruturaj Gaikwad
Ruturaj Gaikwad rose from the ranks in CSK as an uncapped batter to becoming their captain in 2024. Since then, CSK have gone three years in a row without making the top four, and that year included 2026.
In IPL 2026, CSK won just 6 of their 14 matches. A streak of 6 wins in 8 matches was sandwiched by two different losing streaks of three matches each. Aaron Finch, though, said that Gaikwad could keep his job if he upped his batting performances.
"Yes, I do think Gaikwad can captain them next year. But obviously, his own performance needs to improve as well," said Finch.
6. Riyan Parag
Parag had taken on RR's captaincy on an interim basis last year, but transitioned to the role full-time in IPL 2026. Under him, RR won each of their first four matches in the tournament before hitting a snag in the middle.
RR are still in the playoffs race and have their fate in their own hands. Because of injuries, Parag has led in only 11 of the team's 13 matches. He has won 6 and lost 5 of those.
Aaron Finch said that he was undecided about Parag's fate with the armband and that he was at risk of getting culled next year.
"I'm on the fence on this one, because I think there can be a couple of young Indian players that are fighting for that job. So, do I think that he'll be captain? No. Should he be the captain? I think, yes," Finch said.
7. Axar Patel
Axar Patel became DC's captain in 2025 as well. That year, the team won each of their first four matches but still didn't qualify for the playoffs.
This year, the band-aid was ripped off from the start. After winning their first two games, Delhi went on to lose 7 of the next 9. Winning their last two matches has now given Axar Patel's men an outside chance to finish in the top four.
Aaron Finch said that the southpaw should not continue as skipper and named KL Rahul as his replacement. "Yeah, KL could do a wonderful job. He's done it in the past. I think Axar's not using himself with the ball to the best of the team. He's maybe got a reluctance because he's captaining," Finch said.
8. Pat Cummins
Cummins was named SRH skipper in 2024 following his winning the ODI World Cup and the WTC the previous year as captain. Under his leadership, SRH started a revolution in aggressive batting that led them to the runner-up position in 2024.
In 2025, it did not go as well, and the 'Orange Army' failed to make the last four. This year, though, they are well and truly back. Cummins split leadership duties with Ishan Kishan for 7 matches each since he was working his way up from a back injury.
In his 7 matches, Cummins led SRH to 5 wins and the third spot on the points table. Finch said that Cummins should be the captain next year as well.
9. Rajat Patidar
Patidar, too, has seen a lot of success after being named RCB skipper in 2025. Last year, he led the team to their first-ever IPL title after an 18-year wait and carried that consistency into 2026.
This year, Patidar led RCB to the top of the points table by winning 8 of his 13 matches in charge. Jitesh Sharma had to take the captaincy for one match this year.
Aaron Finch said that Patidar should continue as captain.
10. Shubman Gill
Gill was named the Gujarat Titans captain in 2024 after Hardik Pandya was traded away to MI. In his first year as captain, his team did not make the top four, but he made up handsomely for that in the next two years.
In both 2025 and 2026, Gill has managed to keep GT in the top three in the points table. Last year, they lost the Eliminator, but will play Qualifier 1 this year.
Aaron Finch said that Gill should continue as captain.
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