Greg Chappell, who is regarded as one of the greatest cricketers to have played for the Australian cricket team, recently hailed former Indian captain MS Dhoni as ‘one of the sharpest cricket minds”.
Time and again, Greg Chappell has spoken highly of MS Dhoni, who is hailed as one of the greatest players around the world. MS Dhoni ended his career as the most successful captain around the world, having won all the ICC trophies and major tournaments around the world.
Greg Chappel, who coached the Indian cricket team for two years, has coached some of the greatest Indian players like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, MS Dhoni, and Yuvraj Singh, among others. Recently, in his column for ESPNcricinfo, Chappell cited the example of MS Dhoni, while lamenting the absence of natural environments that once used to play an important part in the growth of players in strong cricket nations. He wrote:
“The developed cricket countries have lost the natural environments that were a big part of their development structure in bygone eras. In those environments, young cricketers learned from watching good players and then emulating them in pick-up matches with family and friends,”
He added:
“The Indian subcontinent still has many towns where coaching facilities are rare and youngsters play in streets and on vacant land without the interference of formal coaching. This is where many of their current stars have learned the game,”
In his column, he wrote about Dhoni, whom he thought was ‘one of the sharpest cricket minds’ he has encountered.
“MS Dhoni, with whom I worked in India, is a good example of a batter who developed his talent and learned to play in this fashion. “By competing against more experienced individuals on a variety of surfaces early in his development, Dhoni developed the decision-making and strategic skills that have set him apart from many of his peers. He is one of the sharpest cricket minds I have encountered,”
