He supported the claims of Rod Marsh to the Australian captaincy over the incumbent, Kim Hughes, in the early 1980s. The constant campaign against Hughes destabilised his authority. Compounding the situation, the ACB compelled Hughes to be interviewed by Chappell on a regular basis. He also criticised Hughes' batting. "Hughes needs to score the runs when they are needed most. He is not doing this and his inconsistency is rubbing off on others... there is a not a lot of thought in his batting".