Virat Kohli
IPL captaincy debut: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Rajasthan Royals, Jaipur, 2011
Age: 22 years 187 days
Kohli was appointed full-time RCB skipper only in 2013, but he got his first taste of leadership two years earlier when Daniel Vettori sat out of RCB's game against Rajasthan Royals with a knee problem. Kohli, already a regular in the Indian team, was the natural successor. He kickstarted his captaincy career with back-to-back wins but then endured a 111-run trouncing at the hands of Kings XI Punjab. In all, he captained RCB in 143 games in the IPL.
Steven Smith
IPL captaincy debut: Pune Warriors vs RCB, Pune, 2012
Age: 22 years 344 days
Long before he established himself as a great batter, Smith served as Pune Warriors captain for one match towards the end of IPL 2012. Smith had gone unsold in the auction that year, but Warriors, who boycotted the auction over disagreements with the BCCI, signed him before the season began. At the fag end of a poor season for Warriors, in which they finished bottom of the league, the misfiring Sourav Ganguly stepped down, and Smith, who had captained Sydney Sixers in the previous Big Bash League season, took over. A few years later, Smith went on to captain Royals and Rising Pune Supergiant.
Suresh Raina
IPL captaincy debut: Chennai Super Kings vs Delhi Daredevils, Delhi, 2010
Age: 23 years 112 days
MS Dhoni was hit on the arm by a rising Shane Bond delivery and sidelined for a few days during the 2010 season, and Raina, Chennai's leading batter in the previous two editions, stepped in for three games. In his first game as the CSK captain, he scored a vital 49 not out in a tall chase against DD, but CSK lost their next two games under him. Raina's services were needed just twice more for CSK, in 2019, but he did captain Gujarat Lions for their two seasons, in 2016 and 2017.
Riyan Parag
IPL captaincy debut: Rajasthan Royals vs Sunrisers Hyderabad, 2025
Age: 23 years 133 days
Parag has been in the IPL for six years, but he is still only 23 and is set to captain Rajasthan Royals in their first three games of IPL 2025 as Sanju Samson, recovering from finger surgery, will play purely as a batter. Parag, who has captained his domestic side Assam in 23 matches across formats, had a breakthrough 2024 - he scored 573 runs in the IPL and made his India debut. Leading Royals in Samson's absence seems like a just reward.
Shreyas Iyer
IPL captaincy debut: DD vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Delhi, 2018
Age: 23 years 142 days
Delhi Daredevils, as the Delhi franchise was known then, had lost five of their first six games in IPL 2018 when their out-of-form captain Gautam Gambhir stepped down. Iyer, who had captained India A and Mumbai by then, was one of the few bright spots for Daredevils and replaced Gambhir. While Daredevils could not avoid the wooden spoon, they went out on a high with back-to-back wins against Mumbai Indians and CSK. Iyer went on to captain the Delhi franchise till 2021 before becoming captain of KKR. His new gig as Punjab Kings captain makes him the second Indian, after Ajinkya Rahane, to captain three different IPL franchises.