Former Australian captain Ian Chappell has lauded the influence of Pat Cummins after Australia's incredible ODI World Cup final victory.
Chappell admitted the 30-year-old has exceeded his expectations as a leader, following a year where Australia has won the World Test Championship, retained the Ashes in England and won the World Cup.
"I think he's gone beyond being a good captain, he's a very good captain," he told Wide World of Sports.
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"I probably thought he would be a good captain, now I think he's better than that, that's probably the surprise."
Cummins' leadership was put under the microscope when Australia went 0-2 in the opening stages of the World Cup.
The fast bowler then raised eyebrows when he elected to bowl first in the World Cup final, however it proved to be the right call as Australia won comfortably.
Chappell believes Cummins has improved throughout the year after a missed opportunity in the Ashes when Australia went 2-0 up early in the series.
"Well if you don't improve as a captain you're pretty stupid, you're doing the job all the time and the only way you can get better as a captain is to do it, you'll always make mistakes but it's a matter of making the correct decision as often as you possibly can and I think Pat has been very, very good," he said.
"If you don't develop as a captain you don't last very long. I thought right from the start that he'd be a good captain and it's turned out he's probably been better than I thought he'd be. I think he's been terrific."
One of the most controversial moments for Cummins in the role came when Justin Langer resigned as coach.
The Australian captain copped criticism from former teammates of Langer for a perceived lack of support as Andrew McDonald assumed the role.
McDonald and Cummins have since combined for another successful period in Australian cricket.
Chappell believes it's more down to the players though, indicating that a coach has little impact on results.
"I've never had a coach, I don't believe in them," he said.
"I don't think a coach makes much difference, maybe a good one might make a fraction of a difference.
"Tell me who takes the wickets, who makes the runs, who takes the catches, it's the players and for me they're the important ones.
"The fact the team had so much belief in itself, I think that's attributed to Pat Cummins, they had belief in him as a bowler, they also had belief in his captaincy.
"I think Pat's the most inspirational player in that Australian side, and has been for a number of years, I think that inspiration has seeped through to the team so I tend to think that the captain and the players are the ones that deserve the most credit."
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