An injury-stricken India without its star players achieved an incredible 2-1 victory over Australia in the four-round series and Chappell believes it is the strong national structure and efforts put in by BCCI that prepare its youngsters to face the rigors of international cricket.
“Our young cricketers are weekend warriors compared to their Indian compatriots, who have a challenging game from the under 16 age group onwards,” Chappell wrote in a column for ‘Sydney Morning Herald’.
“By the time an Indian player reaches the national eleven, he has had a thorough apprenticeship that prepares him to enter the Indian side with a reasonable chance of success.
“I am afraid, in comparison, Will pucovski and Cameron green they are still in elementary school in terms of experience. ”
Noting the huge difference in the amount spent by the two boards, Chappell said that Cricket Australia “can’t make 1960s Holdens in this age of electric cars.”
Will Pucovski. (AFP photo)
“BCCI is investing millions of dollars in budding Indian cricketers. Cricket Australia, by comparison, spends $ 44 million on the Sheffield Shield. The comparative spending gap is not a gulf; it is the size of the Indian Ocean.” wrote. .
“If Cricket Australia doesn’t realize what it takes to be competitive in test cricket and our entire cricket management doesn’t change its attitude about where to invest in talent, we too will be winners in no time.”
Chappell said that “the skill level of the Indian youth teams would put some of our first-class teams to shame.”
“Their ability to deal with pressure has been cultivated in the cauldron of close matches. That level of intensity cannot be replicated at nets or against lesser rivals. The fact that India has 38 first-class teams should give you an idea of the depth of talent available, “he wrote.
“What you see when looking at the Indian A and youth teams is the surprising degree of maturity and an intuitive understanding of all aspects of the game. It is as rare as it is absolute. So much so that one can be forgiven for thinking of a The men’s team are playing a group of schoolchildren. ”
Chappell said that “India’s level of investment from the grassroots has left the rest of the cricket world in its wake” and “the chaos that COVID-19 has caused in cricket coffers around the world will only widen the gap between India and the have-nots. ”
“For those of you who were surprised that India could deal with everything that was thrown at you in this series, and were able to keep your nerves and win in such a brave way, I say: you better get used to it.
“Don’t worry about India becoming the best team, they are already capable of producing the top five teams in world cricket!”
Chappell also felt it was a mistake to play the same bowlers in all four tests.
“The biggest mistake was playing with the same four players in each test. For pacemakers, playing four tests in five weeks is like running four marathons in as many weeks. There were signs in Sydney that Mitchell Starc, in particular, was tired.” . he wrote.
The former Australian hitter blamed the batters for the loss.
“I don’t blame Tim Paine and our bowlers for this loss. The blame falls squarely and squarely on the hitters, who just didn’t make enough runs on friendly grounds.”
Chappell said Australia will soon need to find replacements for David warner and Steve Smith.
“Our days of domination are over, unless we start to produce a group of hitters who surpass 125 overs in the first innings. David Warner is struggling and Steve Smith won’t be around forever, so we need to find the champions who are going to replace them. , and soon “.
He also endorsed Paine, who faced much criticism for his maintenance and captaincy.
“For those asking for heads to roll, especially those looking for Tim Paine’s head on a pike, I say REALLY? Tim is one of only five players who can claim an automatic spot on this Australian team. Sure, he didn’t have his best test series behind the stumps, but still averaged 40 with the bat, “he wrote.
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