Greg Chappell left the Indian team in tatters: VVS Laxman

Back in May 2005, former Australian cricketer Greg Chappell was appointed as the head of the Indian national cricket team. However, his stint with the team wasn’t a pleasant one by any stretch of the imagination. Sourav Ganguly, the then Indian captain, was also sidelined. India went into the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies with Rahul Dravid as the captain.

However, India crashed out of the event after the group stage following defeats against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The national team was subsequently slammed left, right and centre for their shambolic show in cricket’s biggest showdown. After their dismal campaign in the Caribbean, Chappell sent a letter to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and resigned as the coach.

He was brusque and abrasive

Recently, former Indian batsman, VVS Laxman also lashed out at Chappell and also termed playing under his tutelage as the worst phase of his cricketing career. The Hyderabad cricketer holds Chappell for the scenario and also went on to mention that he has absolutely no respect for the erstwhile coach. The 44-year-old hurled the accusations in his autobiography ‘281 and Beyond’.

“The coach had his favourites, who were well looked after, while the others were left to fend for themselves. The team had disintegrated before our eyes. Greg’s entire stint had been cause for bitterness. He was rigid and inflexible in his approach, and didn’t know how to run an international team. He often seemed to forget that it was the players who played the game and were stars, not the coach,” Laxman was quoted as saying in Hindustan Times.

“Greg Chappell arrived in India to a groundswell of goodwill and support. He left the team in tatters, having played an influential part in the worst phase of my playing career. Results on the field might suggest that his methods worked to some extent, but those results had nothing to do with our coach.

“He was brusque and abrasive, highly opinionated and rigid in his thinking. His man-management skills were non-existent. He quickly sowed further seeds of discontent in an already diffident team…I will always respect Greg Chappell the batsman. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for Greg Chappell the coach,” he added.

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