Courtesy: 7Cricket/BCCI
Ricky Ponting, the former captain of Australia, commented on the poor performances of the Indian batting lineup in the Test format ahead of the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) series, starting on Friday, November 22, at the Optus Stadium in Perth. The 49-year-old remarked that in their bid to become better equipped to face pace in Australia and other overseas countries in the last decade, the Indian cricket team has steadily deteriorated while playing versus spinners at home.
Notably, in the recently concluded three-match Test series at home against New Zealand, the Indian cricket team were whitewashed for the first-time in a series with three games or more. A defeat by 0-3 in the Test series was also the first one for India at home in 12 years, allowing the Black Caps to win three matches within two weeks in their own conditions after losing just two matches to them previously in more than 55 years.
It just seems to me that Indian batters are bit better equipped to face the fast stuff: Ricky Ponting
Ricky Ponting spoke to 7Cricket in Australia about the progression of the Indian Test team in the last decade or so, stating that while their decision to produce more quality fast bowlers at home and allowing batters improve against pace worked wonders, it also ended up developing some chicks in the armour while batting against spin. These issues were amplified during India’s loss against New Zealand in three straight Test matches at home.
“You look at what they (Indian batters) have done the last couple of times In Australia, they have actually done well here. (Cheteshwar) Pujara was a real rock in everyone’s shoes for a long time. Virat (Kohli) has played well here. Rishabh (Pant) has played well here. I think (Yashasvi) Jaiswal and Shubman Gill will play well in Australia. It just seems to me that they are bit better equipped to face the fast stuff than they were for a long time,” remarked Ricky Ponting.
The two-time ODI World Cup winning captain is set to commentate on the opening day of the first Test between Australia and India at the Optus Stadium in Perth before shifting his attention to IPL 2025 mega auction as the head coach of Punjab Kings.
