“The ‘Chappell Way’ Doesn’t Work in India”

The recent form of the Indian cricket team has been disappointing and as expected, the team has come under a lot of scrutiny. Not only the players, but the head coach Gautam Gambhir has also been criticized for his methods.

Gambhir, who is known for his strict and direct approach, has been compared to former India head coach Greg Chappell, under whose leadership the Men in Blue fell to a new low in cricket.

Recently, former Indian team coach revealed Gambhir’s methods and linked him with Greg Chappell. The coach believes that success in India as a head coach requires an approach towards the players.

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Gautam Gambhir compared to Greg Chappell

According to PTI, the former national coach slammed Gautam Gambhir’s style of working as head coach and compared his work culture to that of Greg Chappell. The former selector advised Gambhir to follow in the footsteps of Ravi Shastri, Rahul Dravid, John Wright and Gary Kirsten.

“Or you will be like Ravi Shastri, who would be media friendly, give those soundtracks that uplift the players and make them alpha males,” PTI quoted the selector as saying.

The coach further confirmed that Greg Chappell’s way of working will not work in the Indian environment and stated that the coaches will leave but the players will stay.

“Or be like Rahul Dravid, Gary Kirsten or John Wright, who would stay on the sidelines, letting the players take center stage. The ‘Chappell Way’ doesn’t work in India. Gambhirs or Shastris or Dravidis will go, but the players will stay,” he remarked.

India’s success under different coaches

India has enjoyed considerable success under former head coaches such as Gary Kirsten and Rahul Dravid. With Kirsten as the head coach, India famously won the ODI World Cup in 2011 and also climbed to the top spot in the ICC Test rankings.

With Rahul Dravid as the head coach, India won the 2024 T20 World Cup and also reached the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup where they were simply unbeatable till the final. The men in blue also enjoyed a fair amount of success under Ravi Shastri as they won two Tests in Australia during his tenure.

However, the team suffered badly during Greg Chappell’s tenure. Chappell was known for his Australian way of playing which did not really work with the Indian players. The Men in Blue were knocked out of the 2007 ODI World Cup following which Chappell was sacked from his role.

Tough start to Gautam Gambhir’s tenure

The start of Gautam Gambhir’s tenure as India’s chief coach was not easy. While the team has continued their exceptional run in the T20I format, their results in Tests and ODIs have taken a bit of a hit.

In July, India lost the ODI series in Sri Lanka after a gap of 27 years. They also lost the home Test series against New Zealand 0-3 in shocking fashion. It was India’s first Test series defeat at home in 12 years.

Recently, the Men in Blue failed to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in which Gautam Gambhir was decimated by several questionable decisions. Australia went on to win the series 3-1 to confirm their place in the World Test Championship final.