Rahul Dravid Was Invested In India Becoming Best In The World, But Not Everyone Had Same Feeling: Greg Chappell

Former India coach Greg Chappell continues to aim his shots at some former India players even 14 years after he left the job following an early group stage exit from the 2007 World Cup.

Greg Chappell, who was appointed as coach in 2005, says that only Rahul Dravid, the captain then, was invested in the improvement of the team while the rest of the senior players didn’t have the same thoughts. Players such as Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman, and Harbhajan Singh have openly criticized Greg Chappell’s coaching which culminated in humiliation at the 2007 World Cup as India lost to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

The former Australia captain alleges that the senior players in the side were more concerned about their position in the team rather than looking for the benefits of the whole group.

“Dravid was really invested in India becoming the best team in the world. Sadly, not everyone in the team had the same feeling. They would rather concentrate on being in the team. There was some resistance from some of the senior players, because some of them were coming to the end of their careers,” Greg Chappell said on Cricket Life Stories Podcast,

When Sourav got dropped from the team, they realized anyone can go: Greg Chappell

Gour months into his role as a coach, Greg Chappell had a public fall-out with the then captain Sourav Ganguly; the left-hander was sacked from captaincy, replaced by Dravid, and was also dropped from the team.

He reckons Ganguly’s exclusion was met with despise towards him by the senior players, as they realized that anyone can be dropped from the side.

However, returned to the eleven months ahead of the World Cup – Greg Chappell says the senior players made it clear to him that they didn’t want any change. The 72-year-old asserts that he was offered a contract extension after the World Cup but refused it because of the dressing room environment.

“When Sourav got dropped from the team, we had a lot of attention from the players, because they realized if he can go, anyone can go. We had a great 12 months, but then the resistance got too much, Ganguly came back into the team. The message from the players was loud and clear – ‘We don’t want change.’ Even though the board offered me a new contract, I decided that I did not need that kind of stress,” the former coach further added.

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