Nearly a 1000 km of rift in Zimbabwe

Meanwhile, coach Greg Chappell, accompanied by four players, landed in Harare on a morning flight. That’s a distance of nearly a thousand kilometers now, between coach and captain!

If there is introspection at any end, it has not shown up in black and white. Captain and coach, with most others of the squad attended a private dinner in Bulawayo last evening. Nothing there indicated that there were signs of a thaw, though their joint presence could yet be interpreted in positive light.

In short, every act could be interpreted in any way, depending on what you want to believe. In Harare, the experts continue to ponder over what might have happened. Former India captain Ravi Shastri wants to find the context of Chappell’s advice. “It’s important to know in what context

Chappell said so. He might have privately gone to him and said ‘you are feeling the pressure and it would not be a bad idea to step down’. Or, ‘you feel your own personal batting form is not the greatest, you feel the responsibility is too much so you should step down’. You need to get the truth.”

Sunil Gavaskar, who like Ravi Shastri was in the panel which appointed Chappell as coach, feels it would not be a bad idea for the board to send a selector on tour for he could form an opinion or play a role in issues of dressing room.

“When Australia came to India last year, they had selectors Trevor Hohns and Allan Border, accompany the team. It would give him a fair idea of what’s happening in the dressing room.

There could be some guys who are not good for the spirit of the dressing room. A selector sitting back in India wouldn’t be able to see (it).”

Previous coach John Wright, feels Shastri, was not pulling rank towards the end of his career. “It is very important for Chappell to instill discipline. Get the right kind of camaraderie between the seniors and the juniors.

If a senior player gets out of hand, it is his job to reprimand him. He must tell him that it’s a team sport and by what he is doing, the team performance can get affected.”

Gavaskar sees the coach as a man who gives the team direction. “A coach has to be the one who helps the team to progress, help it get to another level. He has to identify the team as well as individual goals.”