Ponting must declare his captaincy innings closed
Columnist
By Spiro Zavos, 5 Jan 2010 Spiro Zavos is a Roar Expert
Australia's captain Ricky Ponting, right, is bowled by England's Graeme Swann as wicketkeeper Matthew Prior, centre, looks on and Ravi Bopara jumps on the fourth day of the third cricket test match between England and Australia in Birmingham, England, Sunday Aug. 2, 2009. (AP Photo/Jon Super)
I was a guest at one of the VIP boxes at the SCG on Monday, the second day of the Australia Vs Pakistan Test. Yes, someone has to make these sacrifices.
The talk of the good and mighty in the box was all about the sheer folly of Ricky Ponting batting on a slick, green SCG pitch after winning the toss.
It’s history now that Australia was bowled out for 127, with the captain himself making a golden duck.
At the end of play on the second day, with Pakistan enjoying batting benign pitch in contrast to the rearing beat of the day before, Australia was over 200 runs behind and facing the possibility of an unexpected defeat.
The consensus was that Ponting was traumatised by his equally indefensible decision to put England into bat at Edgbaston in 2005. England won the Test easily, and with it, a winning lead in the Ashes.
“Ponting will never put the opposition in to bat again,” one of the good and mighty concluded.
But there is no hindsight wisdom required to question his decision not to put Pakistan into bat at the SCG. At a breakfast before the Test, Geoff Lawson, Waquar Younis and Stuart Clark were adamant that only the dimmest of captains would willingly bat on the rain-affected SCG pitch.
Ponting’s captaincy career has been marred by a series of inexcusable mistakes.
And this last one should be the mistake that concentrates the minds of the selectors – and the player himself (unlikely, perhaps) – that his captaincy innings should be declared closed.
Just as an aside, Richie Benaud revealed during Channel 9′s excellent television broadcast that the five best captains in his time watching and playing cricket were: Keith Miller, Mike Brearley, Ray Illingworth, Ian Chappell and Mark Taylor.
My guess is that everyone of these captains, and Benaud himself, who belongs in the great captains’ category, would have punted on putting Pakistan into bat.
There is, I know, an old cricket adage that is attributed (incorrectly like many attributions) to W.G.Grace: “You should sometimes think about putting the other side into bat and then never do it.”
Adages, though, like records, exist to be broken.
Sometimes the best thing to do is the most obvious thing. The obvious thing to do on Sunday was to put Pakistan into bat.
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Tony said | January 5th 2010 @ 6:36am | Report comment
In 2005, did England really win “easily” at Edgbaston? Only if your definition of easily is winning by two runs and enduring a nerve-jangling finish.
Nor did that win give England “a winning lead in the Ashes”, it tied the series at 1-1.
Tony said | January 5th 2010 @ 6:42am | Report comment
Mind you, I agree it’s time for Ponting to pull the pin on his captaincy.
Since he’s batting like a loon and been drop sitters, he can start thinking about retirement, too.
vinay verma said | January 5th 2010 @ 6:49am | Report comment
Spiro,in hindsight Ponting’s decision to bat was not so much wrong but that his batsmen were incapable of countering the swing and seam on the first day. It is only conjecture that Captains like Mark Taylor and Ian Chappell would have sent the opposition in.In fact Ian chappell (on Cricinfo this morning) agrees with Ponting’s decision. A combination of good Pak bowling and injudicious shot selection contributed to the debacle. There are days when you feel you have walked under a ladder and this was one of them. I would like to put it down to a very good day in the field for Pakistan.
Going into Day three all three possibilities are there. Though the odds favour Pakistan,Australia have it all to do. It will be interesting to review Ponting’s decision at the end of the Test.
Jameswm said | January 5th 2010 @ 7:22am | Report comment
The best way to win a test is bowl first, bowl them out in a day, then bat for two days.
You don’t often get the chance to do that. This time Ponting did have that chance.
All this “bat first all the time” is rot. Steve Waugh had a penchant for putting the other side in, and it usually worked well. It shows the limitations of Ponting’s captaincy that he can’t put one experience behind him. Ditto the never enforce the follow-on rule.
Lindommer said | January 5th 2010 @ 8:19am | Report comment
I seem to recall a similar incident some 30 years ago when an Australian captain from elsewhere (Greg Chappell) also chose to bat on a Sydney greentop against Pakistan, and was also skittled for a poor score. The Pakistanis won that test. The thing which sticks in my mind is the fact Ponting displayed neither the commonsense, nor humility, to ask the locals what to do when confronted with such a strange pitch. Sydney greentops don’t come along very often, but when they do the winner of the toss MUST choose to bowl.
Terry Kidd said | January 5th 2010 @ 8:25am | Report comment
Can we have a video referral for bad captaincy decisions? I agree that Ponting’s decision to bat was the wrong decision. I was watching the telecast on the first day and was incredibly surprised when Ponting opted to bat. I am by no stretch of the imagination any expert on reading pitches but to my eye there was just too much green and coupled with the cloudy humid conditions I thought whoever batted would have a torrid time.
Another point …. Ponting’s batting against the West Indies and Pakistan to date has not been up to his usual standards. Is age catching up with him? He is 35 years old. Can he remain around long enough for another Ashes battle or should his tenure on the No 3 spot and his captaincy come up for review?
Rickety Knees said | January 5th 2010 @ 8:25am | Report comment
On the money Spiro – we can now add Sydney (v Pakistan) to Nagpur (v India), Melbourne (v SA), Perh (v SA), Edgbaston (v England) as recent tests where Ponting’s captaincy has failed. He is a robotic one day captain who often misses the pivotal moments in test matches. I also believe that the immature behaviour of the team is a reflection of his leadership style. Michael Clarke is not the “man” to replace him as I do not believe that he has made the psychological transition from being a boy to man as yet. I would love to see Simon Katich as captain.
sheek said | January 5th 2010 @ 8:29am | Report comment
I’m inclined to agree with Vinay, & also James. I think it’s important to have a flexible mind about these things.
The law of averages suggest that more or less you’re going to bat first roughly half your career, & you’re going to bowl & field first roughly half your career. So you have to have the flexibility to adapt & be comfortable with either scenario.
Personally, I would have liked to bowl first, but that could also be ignorance on my part. The wicket was green & given the overcast, humid conditions, resembled one of those fabled sticky wickets of olden days of uncovered pitches.
I agree with Vinay it was largely a case of Pakistan playing well to the conditions, & Australia failing to give sufficient respect to either the conditions or the opposition.
As James & Spiro also suggest, Ponting’s “crime” might be that he has lost the mindset to be flexible in his thinking.
Spiro,
I wonder if Richie is losing his memory a little. I cannot believe he omitted Frank Worrell from his list of great captains. I certainly agree with the 5 he named – Miller, Brearley, Illingworth, Chappelli & Tubby Taylor. From everything I’ve read about Worrell, he is deserving of this list, & he captained against Benaud in the fabulous1960/61 series.
For the record, since following cricket from the late 60s, Ian Chappell is far & away the best skipper I’ve seen first-hand.
Rickety Knees said | January 5th 2010 @ 8:56am | Report comment
I have to agree with you Sheek, Chappelli was the archetypal Warrior Captain – a true leader of men.
sheek said | January 5th 2010 @ 9:51am | Report comment
Gidday Rickety,
Please read replied comments to Terry Kidd re Chappelli (& others).
Rickety Knees said | January 5th 2010 @ 10:00am | Report comment
Thanks mate, yeah I also rate Tubby Tyalor and Tugga Waugh. Also agree that Punter has been found out since he has lost Warne, McGrath, Gilchrist etc
Don’t believe much will change as long at the mutual admiration society of Hilditch, Nielsen and Ponting are in control.
Hoy said | January 5th 2010 @ 8:59am | Report comment
There is something not right about this team.
I don’t really follow cricket closely enough since it became a year ’round sport. There was just too much cricket, and it was overexposure for me.
I know there are a lot of factors affecting our team at the moment, like retirement of the games greatest ever leg spinner, his bowling partner, our openers are gone etc, but Ponting is just flat out, not a good captain. And neither is Pup I don’t think. So who is the alternative when the time comes?
And the selectors need their heads read for consistently overlooking the super reliable bowling of Stuart Clark.
I believe there is a fair bit of complacency in the Australian cricket team right now. It is almost like they are riding on the fact that they are the Australian cricket team to get them through games. Some of the shots offered on day one of this test were woeful. I think the only player who even looked decent out there was Johnson when he came out and actually middled a few shots. Everyone else was pathetic on a tough batting pitch, but instead of knuckling in, they all just seemed to give up and play a stupid shot, and expect the next person to do the work and stay in. At one stage, I didn’t expect us to get past 70.