Chappelli, my idol and pal

Former Australia skipper Ian Chappell. Pics/Getty Images

My first cricket hero was Gundappa Viswanath, but Ian Chappell is the one who I grew up idolising after being initiated into the sport.

There was no TV coverage of overseas cricket in the early 1970s. Radio was the only real-time link to cricket action happening outside of India. I would be glued to Radio Australia whenever matches were played in that country, and this was my introduction to Chappell.

There was a buzz around him when he was playing. His name would crop up in the commentary more frequently than any other player's, even when he wasn't batting. The 1974-75 Ashes series tipped everything in Chappell's favour where I was concerned. His dashing approach as a batsman and hard aggression as captain made a huge impact on me.

Australia's captain Ian Chappell is set to introduce the Queen to his players at Lord's in 1975

From an early age, I found the so-called niceties of the game somewhat hypocritical. If you don't take the field to win, why play at all? Chappell was the kind of player I wanted to be. He was a polarising figure in his heyday. He played really hard, but also played fair, as I got to understand, which seemed the best way to play.

I would read about how he would be in eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation with opponents on the field, then share a beer with the same person immediately after the game. This was ‘spirit of cricket' for me, and made Chappell even more endearing.

A fantastic captain

He was obviously a fantastic captain, not losing a single series. He had the ability to get the best out of his players, and under him, Australia became world-beaters in the 1970s. It's not often that players are revered by teammates long after their playing days are over, but Chappell still commands the loyalty of those who played under him. This says something about his character and personal charisma.

Ravi Shastri

I got to know Chappell on the several tours we made of Australia from the 1980s, and used these opportunities to pick his brain, get insights into why he was so successful as a captain. Essentially, as I understood, this was because he was always looking to take a match forward, not waiting for things to happen.
I got to know him better when we became fellow commentators for Mark Mascarenhas's WorldTel. Like me, Mark too admired Chappell hugely, and there were several evenings we spent discussing cricket's past, present and future.

He had the reputation of being abrasive, but that was far from the real Chappell as I discovered working with him. True, he could be as blunt as a shovel, irrespective of the reputation of the other party. But not pointlessly; only if he believed there was an absence of reason or misuse of position by the other.

Droll sense of humour

I love his droll sense of humour too. It takes a while to get used to it because he is not the boisterous, guffawing kind. He has biting wit, and, with age, this has become even sharper.

When Mark was around, evenings used to be great fun because they both were masters at leg-pulling, though in contrasting style. Mark was large and loud, with a Yankee's penchant for drama and over-the-top debates. Chappell would be surgeon-like, using his words like a scalpel to make his point.

Most of the time, he was an original in such matters, but on one issue I can claim he was my follower. I remember a match in Colombo which WorldTel was broadcasting. It rained and rained that day, ruining any prospect of play.

Mark, who was in the box with us, turned to me and said, ‘Looks a total washout; hard luck guys,' implying that there was to be no payment. My response to him was, ‘Once the tie is worn and we are at the ground, the meter's running, Mark.' Chappell loved this so much that it became his standard dig at Mark whenever play looked doubtful.

Chappell has an elephant's memory. He remembers everything about everybody he has met, and particularly those he's played with or against. Over the past few decades, over several conversations, I've discovered his fascination for two players: Doug Walters and Erapalli Prasanna.

Walters he holds in high esteem for his skills and match-winning abilities; so much so that Chappell was willing to look the other way at some of Dougie's indiscretions. Prasanna he admired for his skill and mastery over flight, the ability to deceive the best batsmen in the air.

If you press the play button on these two players, Chappell will spend at least a couple of hours on each.

He is a brilliant, incisive commentator because he's proactive, and can read and analyse proceedings swiftly, more often than not ahead of everyone else. But that's just one part of why he is so admired among fans and the cricketing fraternity. The other is his candour. He says it as he sees it, without beating around the bush.

He may be wrong at times (though that hasn't happened often), and never hesitates to correct himself. His passion and love for cricket overrode all other affiliations and considerations. When Greg Chappell asked Trevor Chappell to bowl underarm against New Zealand, Ian Chappell was the biggest critic of his brothers, especially Greg who was then captain.

Enjoyable company

I've always enjoyed Chappell's company. There are no false starts with him. What you see is what you get. He is an excellent storyteller who can have you in splits with his anecdotes and impersonations. Whenever we toured Australia, my wife, Ritu, and I would look forward to an evening or two with Chappell. He always came armed with some bottles of fine wine and new stories.

Outside of cricket, what you also get is a man who values loyalty and friendship. He came to Bangalore for Mark Mascarenhas's funeral. He needn't have. But then he wouldn't be Ian Chappell.

Edited excerpts from Star Gazing : The Players in My Life by Ravi Shastri with Ayaz Memon, published by HarperCollins

Ian Chappell's column will be published tomorrow