×

Despite All Controversies, Greg Chappell Taught India How to Win: Suresh Raina

Chappell's reign as coach was full of controversies.

Rahul Dravid, Suresh Raina, Greg Chappell, Greg Chappell coach, Greg Chappell, Australia, India Suresh Raina news, Suresh Raina updates, Suresh Raina latest news, Suresh Raina latest updates, Suresh Raina autobiography, Raina, Dravid, Chappell, India.

Suresh Raina and Ian Chappell. Image Credits: BCCI.

India’s former coach Greg Chappell is regarded as one of the most controversial coaches in Indian cricket history. Chappell was involved in a spat with former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly and things took an ugly turn. Meanwhile, Chappell’s tenure as head coach is more remembered for India’s ouster from the 2007 World Cup.

However, Suresh Raina believes the Indian team under Greg Chappell improved while chasing the target. India was well known to be nervous chasers before Chappell’s stint but the Australian was able to get the best out of the team while they were chasing a score.

In fact, India was able to win 17 matches on the trot under the leadership of Rahul Dravid while chasing in the ODI format as the likes of Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh were delivering the goods consistently while batting in the middle order.

Suresh Raina wrote in his upcoming autobiography – ‘Believe – What Life and Cricket Taught me’, “I think somewhere along the line, despite all the controversies around his coaching career, he taught India how to win and the importance of winning.”

“We were all playing well at that point, but I remember him stressing a lot on breaking down run chases at batting meetings,” wrote Raina.

Meanwhile, Suresh Raina made his International debut under Greg Chappell coaching tenure. The left-hander was able to deliver the goods while batting in the lower-middle order for the Indian team. Raina decided to hang his boots from international cricket after the retirement of MS Dhoni in August 2020.

However, the left-hander continues to play in the Indian Premier League for Chennai Super Kings. Raina scored 123 runs in six matches at an average of 24.60 in the first leg of IPL 2021. The second phase of the tournament will begin on September 19 in UAE and the final will be played on October 15.

trending this week