Stewing Punter not ready for peace with AB, Chappelli
By Jim Morton, 19 Nov 2008
- Tagged:
- Australian Cricket, Cricket, Ian Chappell, Indian cricket, Indian Cricket League, International Cricket Council, New Zealand, Ricky Ponting, Twenty20, Twenty20 cricket
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Ricky Ponting hasn’t made peace with Ian Chappell and Allan Border and has no plans to for quite some time. A stewing Ponting denied he is ready to offer an olive branch to the former Test captains following the huge outcry over the current skipper’s controversial tactics in last week’s fourth Test in India.
Among the torrent of criticism over his decision to speed up the team’s slow over-rate, instead of ruthlessly chasing a series-levelling victory in Nagpur, Ponting was cut deepest by that from Chappell and Border.
The pair believed Ponting put himself ahead of the team’s cause by bowling part-timers to ensure he wouldn’t be suspended for this week’s first Test against New Zealand at the Gabba.
“I haven’t spoken to either of those two gentlemen and probably won’t for a while I wouldn’t have thought,” Ponting said on Tuesday.
“I don’t mind anyone questioning tactics of mine but the thing that worried me the most over this whole issue was the fact that everybody seemed to be saying I was putting myself ahead of the team and I thought that was a bit unfair because anyone who knows me would say otherwise.”
At a pre-Test luncheon in Brisbane, Ponting also said the International Cricket Council and Test playing nations needed to prioritise Test cricket’s place in the international calendar.
He feared for the future of the five-day game with the rise of Twenty20 cricket, which has eaten into the calendar for Tests, and also contributed to the plundering of minor nations.
New Zealand travelled to Australia minus half their best team due to their signing for the rebel Indian Cricket League.
As a non-sanctioned tournament, ICL players, including Black Caps spearhead Shane Bond, are barred from ICC events.
“I think something has to give,” Ponting said over the growth of new Twenty20 tournaments across the world.
“There’s just not enough time in the calendar to fit everything in.
“I’m a bit old-school in my thoughts about the game but Test cricket is the purest form of the game and the one I enjoy most.”
Ponting said time was running out for the problem to be addressed.
“What we can’t afford to have is New Zealand losing another seven players next year.”
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November 19th 2008 @ 6:47am
matta said | November 19th 2008 @ 6:47am | Report comment
Grow up Punter – please….
Almost everythime I read or see an interview from this guy they more I dislike him.
November 19th 2008 @ 1:53pm
Spiro Zavos said | November 19th 2008 @ 1:53pm | Report comment
I can’t see what Ricky Ponting is going on about. Everyone acknowledges that he is a great batsman, in my opinion Australia’s best since Bradman. But he has not explained his curious decision to call off the fast bowlers after lunch in India’s second inning in the last Test, thereby denying his team any chance of winning the match and squaring the series.
The ‘explanation’ offered by Ponting, Cricket Australia and the coaching staff is that it is against the ‘spirit of the game’ not to fulfill the over rate.
What nonsense when winning the Test was at stake. It is clear that the captain was trying to protect his position. Ian Chappell and Allan Border suggested as much, because they could not offer any other credible explanation.
Ponting has behaved very much like Kevin Rudd and his leak of Bush not knowing what the G20 was.
The best thing is to come clean and admit that a mistake was made and then let everyone get on with their life. In all these matters the original offence is not as serious (although Rudd and Ponting made a big mistake) as the attempted cover-up.
November 19th 2008 @ 9:14pm
bennalong said | November 19th 2008 @ 9:14pm | Report comment
Ponting’s problem is elementary. The decision is inexplicable. If you don’t accept the weird “spirit of the game” reasoning, or the equally bizarre reasoning that he was protecting himself against suspension, what are you left with? The shocking possibility that India was supposed to win?
The decision IS inexplicable. ………………………………………….or have I missed something
November 19th 2008 @ 11:16pm
Rowdy said | November 19th 2008 @ 11:16pm | Report comment
Maybe – and I’m just running this up the flagpole to see if anyone salutes, completely out of left-field, off the wall and under the counter – maybe he was acting with respect to the spirit of the game ? Are we so jaded and cynical that this is simply seen as essentially unbelievable ?