Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Reflects on How Cricket Helped Him Develop Leadership Skills

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella was brought up in India and like most Indians, watching and playing cricket is an integral part of the lifestyle in the subcontinent. And that’s why, despite being out of the country all this time – with the great responsibility of Microsoft’s CEO, he hasn’t forgotten about the game. In fact, in a recent interview with Axel Springer’s Mathias Döpfner, Nadella expressed his love for cricket and compared it to a religion.

Nadella said in an interview, “As an Indian and a South Asian, I think it’s more than a religion. For all of us, it’s what we’ve grown up with.”

Considering the ongoing ICC ODI World Cup 2023 in India, Mathias asked Nadella “What have you learned from cricket about leadership?” In response, Nadella recalled his childhood. “I remember one time we played a league match in the city where I grew up in Hyderabad and there was an Australian player who played in that league match.”

Nadella and his teammates were admiring the Australian and watching, and then this coach standing behind him said, “Hey, don’t just admire from afar, compete!” Nadella said afterward: “For me, it was a great way to say: when you’re on the field, how do you go out there and give it your all. Learn from your competition, but don’t fear your competition.”

Additionally, Nadella also recalled a day when his captain didn’t make the best decisions for his teammate, and to prove him wrong, the teammate intentionally dropped catches, lowering overall morale. – It really affected me: this one player deliberately demoralized the whole team just because he wasn’t happy with things. And I think from time to time in the workplace you run into situations where you have one person who’s not really happy, and you really have to act on that,” Nadella added.

Looking back, Nadella believes he has learned a lot from the sport of cricket and has several “lessons to take away”.