An example which readily comes to mind is Shane Warne inspiring an unfancied Rajasthan Royals to win the inaugural IPL in 2008. It was purely the legendary leg-spinner's tactical nous and exceptional man management skills which outsmarted well-heeled teams that had some of the best available talents in world cricket operating for them.
Later in an interview, Warne went on to suggest that T20 is potentially more mentally demanding for captains than Test cricket, something all the 16 skippers, who will lead their respective teams in the ICC World T20, will testify. "Everyone talks about rockn'roll and all that - it's still cricket.
You still have to hit the gaps. I think the captain is under enormous pressure to be a couple of overs ahead of the game. It's still a real tactical game which is what I like about it," Warne had said.
Warne, at times, does indulge in hyperbole (remember when he said that Yusuf Pathan's innings against Mumbai Indians was the best he had seen?) But here there's a good amount of merit in what he is saying.
For a format that is condensed, highly intense and progresses at blink-and-miss speed, the captain not only needs to have the wits about him when the balls are flying over his head, but he also needs to have an intuitive grip on the proceedings, sense where the bowlers need to bowl to get the batsmen out of their comfort zone.
Who does he hold back for the death overs and who he bowls out. An error in judgment or a bad over or two can easily take the game beyond him.
Unlike the other variety where there's plenty of time to think and draw or redraw strategies, a team has very little time to recover in T20.
Over the years, the IPL has been a good indicator of that. Such is the ruthless nature of the format that the captains are under immense pressure to not only lead the side successfully but even perform. Successful international captains like Sourav Ganguly, Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara and Adam Gilchrist, despite their indisputable credentials, have chose to cool their heels when the going got tough.
"You have to think on your feet as a captain. You really need to be proactive in T20. In Tests and ODIs, you still have a chance to come back. But in T20, you have to take decisions quickly keeping in mind that you may or may not have a second chance.
A bad over or two can cost you a game which you have otherwise dominated for a better part," says former Bangladesh captain Habibul Bashar.
Former India all-rounder Sanjay Bangar, who has been roped in as a batting coach by Kings XI Punjab, however, doesn't totally agree that T20 is a captain's game.
"I tend to differ from that. I still look at it like as a team game rather than a person-oriented game. One has to be very dynamic and one has to be a good captain. Just to say that everything depends on the captain is unfair because everybody has to chip in as 11 players are involved," says Bangar.
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