Sachin Tendulkar claims Greg Chappell was the “ringmaster” in a failed plan to replace besieged former captain Rahul Dravid with the batting maestro towards the end of his two-year stint as coach of the Indian team.
Tendulkar’s new autobiography, ‘Playing it My Way’, asserts former Australian captain Chappell was behind a plan to axe senior players and promote Tendulkar to captain ahead of India’s poor showing at the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies.
“Just months before the World Cup, Chappell had come to see me at home and, to my dismay, suggested that I should take over the captaincy from Rahul Dravid,” Tendulkar writes in the book, to be released on November 6. “Anjali [Tendulkar’s wife], who was sitting with me, was equally shocked to hear him say that ‘together, we could control Indian cricket for years’, and that he would help me in taking over the reins of the side.
“I was surprised to hear the coach not showing the slightest amount of respect for the captain, with cricket’s biggest tournament just months away. He stayed for a couple of hours, trying to convince me, before finally leaving.”
Tendulkar says he took the matter to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), suggesting the well-paid Chappell be left behind in India and not take part in the nation’s World Cup campaign.
Chappell says he was surprised by the claims, however did admit to visiting Tendulkar at his home.
“Whilst I don’t propose to get into a war of words, I can state quite clearly that during my time as Indian coach I never contemplated Sachin replacing Rahul Dravid as captain,’’ Chappell said in a statement.
“I was therefore very surprised to read the claims made in the book.
“During those years, I only ever visited Sachin’s home once, and that was with our physio and assistant coach during Sachin’s rehabilitation from injury, at least 12 months earlier than what was reported in the book.
“We enjoyed a pleasant afternoon together but the subject of captaincy was never raised.”
The news comes just weeks before India are to arrive in Australia later this month ahead of a four-Test tour kicking off in Brisbane on December 4.
Photo: Dibyangshu Sarkar/Getty Images
