'A huge call': Khawaja to be axed despite comeback ton, says Ponting

Australian Test great Ricky Ponting believes Usman Khawaja’s stirring century on his international comeback in Sydney won’t be enough for him to retain his place in the side for the fifth Ashes Test.

Khawaja, who returned to the team following Travis Head’s COVID-19 enforced withdrawal, forced a difficult question for selectors ahead of the series finale in Hobart, scoring a classy 137, his ninth Test ton.

However, with Head all but guaranteed of a return after strong showings early in the series, Ponting believes the strength of the rest of Australia’s batting line-up could force Khawaja to the outer again.

“It’s a huge call to make,” Ponting told cricket.com.au on Thursday after Khawaja’s century.

“It’s all about taking your opportunities when they come, and everyone that Australia have given an opportunity to so far in this series has really taken their chance.

“But you’ve got to go back to what your first picked team was, because at that stage [the first Test in Brisbane] it was the strongest XI that Australia could put out.”

Despite the snub, Ponting was full of praise for Khawaja’s sensational return to the Test fold, saying the knock was further proof that the Queensland captain has been miscast by fans and selectors throughout his career.

“He’s been a bit misunderstood as a player and as a person throughout his career because of how easy and laconic and laid back he can make batting look at different times,” Ponting said.

“That’s probably been something that a lot of people have held against him.

“But if you watch the way that he’s played today and look back at some of the other times in his career when things have been really difficult, more often than not he’s found a way to get the job done for himself and for his team.”

Ponting believes even if Khawaja is omitted for the fifth Test, which starts on January 14 in Hobart, his knock has all but guaranteed he will remain around the team for the foreseeable future.

“What it does do is just reaffirm in Usman’s own mind that he’s good enough for international level still, and gives selectors the ammunition they need for future teams they’re picking,” Ponting said.

(Photo by Mark Metcalfe – CA/Cricket Australia via Getty Images)

The Australian great’s Khawaja call is fuelled by his belief that none of the incumbents in the team deserve to be dropped either; while Head’s stirring century in the Gabba Test also make him a certainty to return.

Perhaps the closest to the edge is all-rounder Cameron Green, who has managed just 57 runs this summer – 80 fewer than Khawaja from four extra innings – despite impressive returns with the ball. However, Ponting has urged the selectors to retain faith in the precocious talent, saying his bowling has become indispensable.

“I think they have invested enough in Green at the moment… we’ve seen some great improvements with the ball as well,” he said.

“The fact that potentially they’ll go into Hobart with [Mitchell] Starc and [Pat] Cummins who will have had a fair bit of work under their belt at the end of this Test might be another reason why they might think about having another bowling option up their sleeve.”

Ponting, who was among the first to note Green’s technical deficiencies earlier in the series, maintains the 22-year old still has plenty of work to do to become a bona fide top-six batter at Test level.

“There are some technical deficiencies there that are starting to show up with Cameron Green’s batting… it’s his inability to want to play off the back foot early in his innings that’s bringing him undone,” Ponting said.

“He’s getting stuck on the front foot and missing out on lots of scoring opportunities off his back foot.

“Which we know he’s got – we’ve seen him do it before, we’ve seen him take on the pull shot and play back-foot punch shots.

“There’s some work to do, but I think they’ll stick with him.”