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Cricket PlayersIan Chappell backs Indian cricket team to win Test series in Australia
Former Australian cricket team captain Ian Chappell also rubbished Sourav Ganguly’s claim of him confiding in Jagmohan Dalmiya that his brother Greg was not the right choice for India’s coach.
Former Australian cricket team captain Ian Chappell has backed India to claim their maiden Test series victory in Australia when they travel Down Under to play four Tests between December 2018 and January 2019.
Terming it India’s best-ever opportunity to topple the Kangaroos at their home, Chappell said that an Australian side minus Steve Smith and David Warner would eventually succumb to the quality Virat Kohli’s team possesses at this time.
“I will be predicting India to win the Test series. I don’t know if they win comfortably, but they will win. This is certainly India’s best opportunity ever to win a Test series in Australia. Smith and Warner had accounted for 35 percent of runs scored by Australian batsmen in last couple of years. It would be hard to find their replacements and therefore India are favourites,” Chappell said during the launch of Australian sports app SportsHero at Hotel Trident in Mumbai on Friday.
Chappell, who has carved a niche for himself as an articulate commentator and analyst post retirement, was quick to point out, though, that Australia still have a very good bowling attack.
“Australia will be still hard to beat for they have got a very good bowling attack. Australia bowling attack has to start thinking like former West Indian fast bowler Andy Roberts, who once said that it doesn’t matter what the opposition bowl us out at, we will bowl them out for less. Oz bowling attack has to think on those lines for they won’t have so many runs to play with.”
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Praise for Kohli-Shastri pair
Chappelli, as he is fondly called, was all praise for Indian cricket team’s captain Virat Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri terming the duo a perfect combination.
“I am not saying this because Ravi is my mate. Ravi is a right man to be with Kohli. As you know, Kohli is very aggressive. Ravi is also very aggressive. Both bring winning attitude to the team and their personalities are in the same mould.
“I have said it in past and saying it again. Kohli’s second innings in Adelaide in 2014 was the best counter-attacking innings I have ever seen in Australia. Kohli had said after that innings that the best way for us to draw the game was to try to win the match. And they were that close to winning the game. Ravi was with the team then and his interaction with Kohli was instrumental in the way India approached that run chase. Ravi is the perfect guy to combine with Kohli,” the 74-year-old said.
On Ganguly’s claims
In his recently published autobiography, ‘A Century Is Not Enough’, former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly had quoted former ICC president Jagmohan Dalmiya as saying that Ian had once shared in confidence that his brother Greg might not be the right choice for India’s coach. When asked for his reaction on Ganguly’s claim, the elder Chappell categorically denied having made any such statement.
“Historically incorrect is how I would put my opinion on Sourav’s claims,” he said in his quintessential imperious tone.
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Gillespie, the future Oz coach
With Darren Lehmann stepping down from his position of the coach of Australian team in the wake of ball-tampering scandal in South Africa, Chappell believes former Australian speedster Jason Gillespie is the right man to coach the national side.
“My attitude towards the coach is well documented. I don’t think coach can make much of a difference at international level. However, my choice for coach would be Jason Gillespie. I like him as a person. He has done a great job at different places. He played the game correctly and that is something we need at this moment.”
On Smith, Warner and sandpapergate
Chappell, who scored 5345 Test runs from 75 Tests at an average of 42.42 between 1964 and 1980, is of the opinion that Cricket Australia has done both Steve Smith and David Warner a big favour by banning them.
“I think Cricket Australia got it right. They did Smith and Warner a big favour. You imagine Smith and Warner playing in the next summer against India, they were going to get booed at some of the Australian grounds or all the Australian grounds. That would have shattered their confidence.
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“The worst name you can have in Australia is of a cheat. It would not have been great for the image of Australian cricket to see former captain and vice-captain getting booed.”
Both Smith and Warner have been handed a 12-month ban for their involvement in ball-tampering scandal that came to the fore when young opener Cameron Bancroft was caught on the cameras tampering the ball with sandpaper during Australia’s third Test against South Africa in Cape Town last month. Bancroft has received a nine-month suspension for his part in the incident. Talking about their future, Chappell said he was hopeful of Smith making a comeback, but for Warner all doors seem to have shut.
“It will be hard for them to make a comeback. I don’t think Cricket Australia wants Warner back for he was quite vocal during pay dispute. They were looking for an opportunity to get rid of him. Smith would certainly make a comeback, but he will never captain Australia.”
On being asked if other players including bowlers were aware of ball-tampering, the septuagenarian Aussie said it was hard to speculate what would have actually happened on the field.
“Bowlers were surely looking at the ball, but the fact is that even after the tampering not much happened to the ball as umpire didn’t take any action. It was a certainly a crap piece of sandpaper,” he concluded.
