The former Australia captain, notable for his sharp observations and direct style, spent the best part of his years as a commentator with Channel Nine.
Former Australian captain Ian Chappell has ended a four-decade career as a television commentator. He was a prominent and exceptionally frank voice in cricket. The 78-year-old, who led Australia to glory as captain from 1971 to 1975, told the Sydney Morning Herald that he had given commentary a serious thought before deciding to end it.
Fans of Chappell will miss his frank, razor-sharp analysis that was always clear about the direction he wanted the game to go. Not for him, he said, because many others saw the game as a way to avoid taking a strong stance on certain issues and offending any player or institution.
His media career—He has written a lot of cricket columns, which was much influenced by his prominent spot in Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket after his Channel Nine was denied the rights to broadcast Australian cricket. Chappell was the last of the four original famous commentators for Channel Nine when he retired from playing for Australia in 1980.
Chappell and Channel Nine had a long-lasting connection, but it wasn’t always without conflict.
Richie Benaud, a former Australia captain who Chappell looked up to, Bill Lawry, who steered Australia to victory in the 1969 Test series against India, and the late Tony Greig were the major figures.
Michael Holding, a former West Indies speed star, and Chappell both resisted attempts to restrain their opinions while speaking on the radio. Because of that, cricket enthusiasts all around the world held them in high regard.
He was known for speaking his mind and once advised Rahul Dravid to realize that cricket was all about scoring runs and claiming wickets. That was his take on the legendary Indian batsman’s early career overt defensive tactic.
Despite struggling with health concerns in recent years, including a skin cancer diagnosis, Chappell endured as a keen and fiercely independent voice on the game in print and TV. He regularly writes columns, where he recently questioned the apparent agreement among the game’s administrators that franchise T20 leagues will ultimately dominate cricket’s future, pushing Test cricket to the periphery.
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