Ricky Ponting

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Re: Ricky Ponting

a for effort;383032 said:
Choosing to bowl first on a greentop in overcast conditions because "we prefer batting first" suggests a lack of imagination and tactical nous to me?
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Can we move on from the toss and just admit that we batted like crap with zero application?

The wicket still has grass on it today and the overhead conditions are still forecast yet we can't get a ball past a bat.

3 top order batsmen holed out, yet everyone is throwing their hands up at the toss, we should be looking at the batsmen, everyone bar Watson who got a great ball.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

It's not an either/or situation. Ponting made a howler of a decision to bat first and and then the top order threw their wickets away with reckless batting, it doesn't have to be one or the other.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

a for effort;383027 said:
Huge call. Elaborate on what you mean by 'influencial', because there's a hell of a lot more accomplished batsmen throughout history than Langer and Hayden.
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Influential isn't quite the word I was looking for.

Langer and Hayden are the best two openers Australia has had statistically, averaging 55 together in partnership, and dare I say the best two to watch. Then with Ponting coming in first drop, both with Langer and with Hayden he has 50+ averages batting with. Having those three batting together at the top of the order that could put on 350 just on their own is a huge, huge asset. Having Ponting and Hayden scoring more than 1000 runs in a calendar year, both for five years in a row, is a bucketload of goodness, especially since those two made most of them together in partnerships. No other batsmen in the world have accomplished this feat. If you were the opposition coming up against that Australian team and you go an early wicket, instead of celebrating, you would be saying, 'oh crap Ponting is coming in'.

Just having a good old reminisce. :)
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

Ponting was in the right to bat first. I don't know why people are having trouble understanding that. It's the SCG for christsakes, 99% of the time, if you bat first you will win or draw.

Like Chappelli said, if you are in doubt consult a teammate and bat. If you are still in doubt consult another teammate and bat. Just because he made one 60/40 decision that went towards the 40% does it mean he is a terrible captain. Might even call it a 70/30 decision.

He is the best person in Australia to lead this side. We are talking about his shot selection on this thread I thought.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

Boris;383061 said:
Ponting was in the right to bat first. I don't know why people are having trouble understanding that. It's the SCG for christsakes, 99% of the time, if you bat first you will win or draw.
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No, it was objectively a terrible decision. It doesn't matter how many tests have been won at the SCG batting first, this is nothing like a typical SCG wicket and more thought should have gone into the decision.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

a for effort;383072 said:
No, it was objectively a terrible decision. It doesn't matter how many tests have been won at the SCG batting first, this is nothing like a typical SCG wicket and more thought should have gone into the decision.
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I agree you can't come to a ground knowing what you are going to say at the toss, but even so if I were captain I would have batted there.

Even if it were an objective decision he was still right to bat first.

Pakistan look comfortable on this track so I wouldn't have been surprised if they made 300 in their first innings had they batted first.

You saw the mess the batsman made there... if the number 7 and 8 have the best batting partnership and looked untroubled you know something must have gone wrong.

That is the only thing wrong with the batting line up at the moment IMO. Once a collapse starts it keeps going. I believe this is caused through inexperience batting together and should improve, as long as the selectors keep the team pretty much the same.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

Look, as I said, I don't have a problem with batting first, as Shane Warne said, it's a five day game and he incidentally would have done the same.

However, the application wasn't there from our batsmen, and unfortunately, Ponting was the main offender in this, holing out at square leg first ball is not a good look when you have elected to bat on a wicket that will assist the bowlers. Hussey holing out as well as Haddin really suggest we didn't know how to go about this situation.

It is very disappointing for people that support the test side, because anytime there is a hint of progress or development there seems to be a setback.

Deep down most of us know that if we are to have any chance of winning this test match we will probably need a massive Ponting ton, a reprise of his double hundred a few years back at the same ground against Pakistan would be great.

In a way that is the disappointing thing with this side, at this stage most of us know that the batting is still heavily reliant on Ponting and that in turn is going to mean more teams are going to attack him with the idea that get Ponting out and the rest will follow.

I don't have a problem with the idea of having a hit first, but that type of thinking has to be reflected in the way the batsmen go about their work, that was missing yesterday and it hasn't been a one-off lately.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

Notice Ponting's first two pull shots today. Nothing millionaire about them, just got the bat over them, and made sure they were straight into the ground. That's all I wanted out of him rather than trying to hit it for 6 first ball. Thank-you Punter
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

Anyone think Ponting's position is in jeopardy?

The ABC commentators were talking about it today, asking whether the time was right to start questioning Ponting's place in the side?

I think that may be a bit strong, especially due to his elbow injury.

Thoughts?
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

It's pulling at straws to try and make a story out of nothing.

Obviously Ricky hasn't had the best last few games, but is still scoring some 50s every now and then. He is a strange player in that he doesn't have form slumps, he just has a bad series and the next he is back. Over his career almost everytime he has had a problem someone calls for his head, and for the best player of the decade I think he deserves to retire on his own hand and in no way will ever his spot be in jeopardy.

Besides his captaincy hasn't been losing matches, and that is all that is required at the minimum of a captain.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

Boris;383226 said:
It's pulling at straws to try and make a story out of nothing.

Obviously Ricky hasn't had the best last few games, but is still scoring some 50s every now and then. He is a strange player in that he doesn't have form slumps, he just has a bad series and the next he is back. Over his career almost everytime he has had a problem someone calls for his head, and for the best player of the decade I think he deserves to retire on his own hand and in no way will ever his spot be in jeopardy.

Besides his captaincy hasn't been losing matches, and that is all that is required at the minimum of a captain.
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When it is time to go he can jump or be pushed but that time is not now. Some of those commentators discussing Pontings place in the team have brainwashed themselves into thinking:
1. Clark is a good captain in waiting (maybe)
2. Ponting is a poor captain (questionable)
3. Clark can replace Ponting (Clark isn't that good a batsman)

Ponting goes and the batting is weakened considerably. There is no current player or emerging talent that looks like a shadow of Ponting. We will miss him when he is gone, even if we call for his head now.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

I can't understand this talk about Ponting's 'eye's' going or whatever. A month or two ago he was tearing attacks apart in the ODI format.

Scored a couple of blistering tons against England.

To me his arm is hindering him, when he was caught at slip yesterday and in the first innings of the MCG test he was trying to drive wide balls to straight, as if it was like he was trying to compensate not being able to reach the ball with normal movement.

Im sure the stage will come when Ponting will have to decide about his future, on this evidence 2013 seems a bridge to far, but if Ponting is booted anytime soon then we are stuffed.

I have no doubt the scenario of him moving down the order will be discussed and it is possible that there is some merit in doing that.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

It's time to bring in an apprentice for mine.

Like what happened with Gilchrist and Haddin. Haddin was brought into the side for a few matches when the slightest of spots were available. He didn't keep but just got used to the side.

I wouldn't complain if they brought in someone, don't know who, to blood as the next big batsman and if Clarke is going to be captaining then Ponting has to let him have a handle of the reins.

Ponting has some huge shoes to fill. Even bigger than Warne's and McGrath's.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

Gut tells me that Ponting is out of his depth as a captain. Has selected with his heart rather than his head pretty much every time (yes I know he doesn't pick the team but he gets what he wants and he generally wants his mates - Symonds?).

Gets a team to rally behind him because his has been a brilliant batsman and someone to look up to, and because I can hear the 'woe is us', backs to the wall speeches firing people like Doug Bollinger up.

Ponting if you feel vindicated in choosing to bat on that pitch simply because you won in the circumstances that you did then you are not even close to being smart enough to captain Australia. Vindication would have been if the pitch became unplayable in the last innings causing Pakistan to collapse, or if it slowed dramatically making run scoring in the first and third innings of the match difficult. You cant claim to be vindicated when Pakistan proceeded to loose the match by:

1. throwing away the last five wickets in its first innings;
2. dropping far too many catches;
3. gifting Hussey and Siddle runs with defensive field placings; and
4. refusing to grind out the result (when batting last) and in doing so not paying a fired up Aussie bowling line-up the respect it should have been shown.
 
Re: Ricky Ponting

Move on from the toss, we batted first on a Joburg greentop in early 2009 that was probably more difficult then that SCG wicket and against a better attack and we ended up making 460 odd.

We batted first because we didn't want to bat last, simple.

We batted poorly in the first innings, the toss was irrelevant.
 
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