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In the 1970s, there was no more influential cricketer than Ian Chappell.
As a captain his record is superb, winning half of his 30 Tests in charge of Australia, and never losing a series.
Chappell had a hard, tough side. After being part of a 4-0 drubbing at the hands of South Africa in 1969-70, Chappell developed a competitive edge to the Australian team that would define itself by good, successful cricket and a new word, ‘sledging’.
Chappell had an influence on how cricket was played then and for the next 45 years. Specifically, to walk or not to walk.
If Chappell knicked the ball through to the keeper, he decided it wasn’t his problem whether he should walk off the field or not. According to Chappell, the umpire was there to do a job, and he wasn’t going to make it easier for him to do it.
So Chappell decided that knowing he hit a cricket ball that was caught and stand his ground was not cheating. It was just ‘part of cricket’. You get some bad decisions, so you are entitled to get some good ones.
But what is the difference between edging a ball to the keeper and being caught, and hitting a ball to cover and being caught? The answer is absolutely nothing.
However the answer according to Chappell is you could get away with one and not the other, so stand your ground, and take your chances.
It set a culture that still stands in cricket – when Adam Gilchrist decided to walk it was considered amazing; that playing fair was an incredible, new way to play the sport.
The correct culture to have set would have been if you knew you hit the ball and it’s caught, you walk off the field. To set a culture of cheating was a great disservice to the sport.
When Tierry Henry knowingly used his hand in an international football match against Ireland to help France to a 2010, he correctly copped a load of criticism from all and sundry. However when Ian Chappell decided to hit the ball and stand his ground, it became known as playing tough cricket. Both were cheating.
When Nathan Lyon knew he hit the ball against New Zealand, he should have walked off. Whether the video umpire wanted to make a complete hash of the decision was none of the spinner’s business. He knew he hit the ball.
Ian Chappell did cricket a disservice with the idea of not walking.
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