greg chappell

Upright and unbending, with a touch of the tin soldier about his bearing, Greg Chappell was the outstanding Australian batsman of his generation. Though he had an appetite for big scores, it was his calm brow and courtly manner that bowlers found just as disheartening. He made a century in his first and final Tests, and 22 more in between – although perhaps the outstanding batting of his career left no trace on the record-books, his 621 runs at 69 in five unauthorised World Series Cricket “SuperTests” in the Caribbean in 1979, off a West Indian attack of unprecedented hostility. Less empathic as a captain than his elder brother Ian, he nonetheless won 21 of his 48 Tests and lost only 13. He lost the Ashes in 1977, but reclaimed them in 1982-83. His feat of scoring centuries in each innings of his captaincy debut is unequalled.

After retiring he went into coaching, spending some time with South Australia and working as a consultant at Pakistan’s National Cricket Academy. He also worked as a commentator for ABC Radio. In May 2005 he was appointed coach of the Indian national cricket team on a two-year term – a stint that included a stormy public falling out with the captain, Sourav Ganguly.
Gideon Haigh