Former Australian cricket captain Ian Chappell has serious concerns about Michael Clarke’s leadership ahead of the Ashes series.
The Australian team is in disarray, with Cricket Australia sacking coach Micky Arthur a fortnight before the first Test against England.
Regardless of Darren Lehmann’s appointment as the new coach, Chappell said the key is Clarke’s captaincy.
“He’s a terrific tactician, I think he’s a terrific captain – but that’s the on-field part,” Chappell told 3AW.
“I have serious queries after the last few months about his leadership ability, which is the off-field part of it.”
Chappell, a respected commentator, was also amazed that Clarke missed Australia’s first Champions Trophy one-day match against England as the skipper received ongoing treatment for a back injury.
“You’re about to play England 10 times – for God’s sake, he had to be at that game, surely,” Chappell said.
One of Australia’s most successful Test captains said while Clarke missed all three of his side’s matches at the tournament, he still attended a Shane Warne charity match.
Chappell backed Lehmann to have a positive impact but added Clarke’s leadership would be more important.
“The players will feel Darren is one of them … so that will give them a kick for a little while … in the end, it gets down to what your players do and the way your captain leads the side,” he said.
“If that fails, you’re in trouble.”
Chappell, no fan of team coaches in cricket, said he had no problem with Arthur’s dismissal.
He also took aim at Cricket Australia’s Argus Report.
“What the hell was the point of this Argus review?,” he said.
“All of these things were put in place by the Argus review – the coach was going to be a selector, the captain was going to be a selector.
“They were rubbish ideas … it’s pure window dressing.
“It’s a bit more window dressing, getting rid of the coach.”