Greg Chappell, a famous Australian cricket player and former Indian coach, is having financial difficulties in his life. The legendary Australian batsman’s friends have stepped up to support him during this difficult time, launching an internet fundraising campaign.
Chappell spoke openly about his situation, stating that while he is not in a desperate situation, he is also not living a life of luxury. The ex-Indian coach also stated that, despite his stature as a player, he is not reaping the benefits that current players do.
“I’m not on my a**e’s bones.” “I don’t want it to sound like we’re in dire straits, because we’re not, but we’re also not living in luxury,” Chappell told News Corp.
“I believe most people believe that because we played cricket, we are all living in luxury. While I’m not complaining about being poor, we’re not reaping the same benefits as today’s players,” Chappell added.
Chappell went on to say that he is not the only player from his era who is struggling financially and that the game should do more for the players from that era.
“It is just my friends who realized that we didn’t get a lot and just to make sure that Judy and I were comfortable in our retirement,” Chappell went on to explain.
“To be fair, there are others from our era who are in more dire circumstances and could benefit from assistance, and I don’t think the game has done enough for players from that era.” Especially in comparison to today.
“I believe the players that set the scene for what’s happening today, should probably be recognized for the role they played in getting the game to where it is today,” the legendary Australian cricketer said.
Chappell’s friends come to his defense, claiming that he is in a much worse situation than he is telling himself, and revealing the need for a GoFundMe page. Chapell’s friend also revealed that the Chappell Foundation does not retain any funds.
“Greg is a proud man.” “He’s working harder than he says,” Chappell’s friend Peter Maloney said.
“The Chappell Foundation is led by Darshak Mehta, and all funds raised are distributed entirely.” They distribute it annually, so at the end of each year, there is no money left over and they begin again. If you sign your name to a foundation, you have the right to some money from it. “But Greg hasn’t taken a dime out of it, although he could,” Maloney said.
“I guess the irony was that he was the face of it, showing up to every function and raising all this money while not having much himself.” To put it another way, we’ll probably end up raising around $250,000 from it, which will significantly improve his last few years,” Maloney added.
Chappell is regarded as one of the greatest Australian batters of all time, having played 87 Test matches for Australia and scoring 7,110 runs with 24 centuries. He also appeared in 74 One-Day Internationals.
Chappell served as India’s head coach for two years, from 2005 to 2007.