The most successful Test captains of all-time

As Graeme Smith sets out to become the first player to lead in 100 Test matches, Rajneesh Gupta figures out the most successful captains of all-time.

Graeme Smith will become the first player to captain a side in 100 Test matches when South Africa take on Pakistan in the first Test at Johannesburg.

Smith made his captaincy debut for South Africa at the age of 22 years 82 days. Only the Nawab Pataudi had led a Test side at a younger age at that time.

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Since then, Smith has played a very important role in South Africa's remarkable success in the longer version of the game, taking them to the No 1 position in the ICC Test rankings. And all this while not letting the captaincy burden affect his batting.

Allan Border

When he took over the captaincy reins from Kim Hughes, the Australian team was in tatters. It was Border who transformed the side into a world-class side.

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Border captained Australia in 93 Tests at a stretch - a record that still stands and is highly unlikely to be broken anytime soon.

Captaincy record:

Stephen Fleming

Figures don't really show how shrewd was Fleming as a captain. The lack of resources at his disposal did not allow Fleming to go for the kill as he would have liked at times.

His man-management along with his ability to perform under pressure earned him the respect from fellow-teammates and opponents.

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Shane Warne praised him as the best captain in world cricket and Graeme Swann recently said that Fleming was one of the two best captains he has ever seen.

Captaincy record:

Ricky Ponting

The Australian side under Ponting changed the way Test cricket is played. It was Ponting who made winning a mantra for his side. Whatever be the circumstances, his side always played for a win.

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Between 2005 and 2008 a Ponting-led Australia won 16 Tests on the trot - longest winning sequence for any captain in Test cricket.

Captaincy record:

Clive Llyod

No other team in cricket history dominated as completely as the West Indies under Lloyd did. There was an aura around this team that would just intimidate the opponents.

Though some critics argue that his only role was to rotate his bowlers, it was Lloyd who managed to unite individuals from the disparate nations of the Caribbean into a harmonious team.

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Such was the dominance of this side that they played a record 27 Tests without defeat between 1982 and 1984. Between March and November 1984, they won a then-record 11 Tests in a row including England's 5-0 whitewash in England -- the first and only 5-0 whitewash by a touring side.

Captaincy record:

Steve Waugh

The Australian team was going through a transition when Steve Waugh took over the reins from Mark Taylor. Waugh was lucky to inherit some excellent cricketers from Taylor and find several more emerging ones.

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It was to Waugh's credit that he recognised their talent and propelled them to ever higher levels of achievement. This Australian team set a few benchmarks for themselves. Trying to win every match was a given.

Scoring 300 runs in a day soon became a norm. This Australian side just brushed aside opponents. Between 1999 and 2001 they won 16 Tests in a row, before coming across a strong Indian side.

Captaincy record: