Ricky Ponting should be sacked

[NUFAN]

Keep Ponting.

Pick the four best bowlers in the country and Ponting will have more to work with and his captaincy won't be a big deal.

 

[Uppercut]

Keep Ponting.

Pick the four best bowlers in the country and Ponting will have more to work with and his captaincy won't be a big deal.

Nope- the overrates will fall behind and Ponting will launch a campaign for the selection of his granny on the grounds that she gets through her overs quickly.

 

[Uppercut]

Must admit that I found it very frustrating watching how easily Kallis and de Villiers were allowed to get singles with the deep point employed. Was smart cricket by them, but just so defensive by Ponting.

Yeah, absolutely. Batsmen adapt to modern fielding ideas and hence have become excellent at taking advantage of boundary-huggers at deep point, deep square leg and long-on/long-off against spin. It's what they do for about 20 overs of every ODI.

 

[Richard]

I'd rather them score four an over with one scoring shot, than four an over with four scoring shots, each of them with no risk.

The lack of risk in singles and the idea that hitting a boundary is always risky is so horribly overplayed.

Depending on the type of bowling, one can be riskier than the other. Sometimes the appropriate setting for the bowling coming down is a couple of men in the deep; sometimes it's everyone in the ring.

Not that I'm saying either was neccessarily the case at The WACA just now, merely that the generalisation is not a good one.

 

[protea lover]

Even with the defensive fields if he had good fielders like symonds and clarke in the ring they could still prevent singles thus applying more pressure. However yesterday Symonds was at fine leg and Clarke long on this makes no sense.

 

[Matt79]

Even with the defensive fields if he had good fielders like symonds and clarke in the ring they could still cut balls offand prevent singles thus applying more pressure. However yesterday Symonds was at fine leg and Clarke long on this makes no sense.

 

[protea lover]

Disregard that one.

 

[Hoggy31]

Indeed, laughed at the comments regarding him never playing another Test etc.

It's not his fault he was picked as a bowler when he clearly is a specialist batsman (talented one at that), one of the cleanest strikers going around and only 25, big future in the middle order.

Will do this after his first Test hundred as well.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

I've been a long time supporter of White as well, have defended him on here numerous times. Am enjoying his form atm.

 

[pasag]

Great thread

 

[BoyBrumby]

Thoughts, anyone?

Way past his sell-by date as a captain IMHO and reckon it's only the strange quirk the Aussies have about not playing ex-captains that keeps him in the gig.

 

[Matt79]

That and 10,000 runs at an average above 50. Reckon it's buying him a little bit more time to find some form than someone without that kind of record.

Didn't watch this series (don't watch cricket involving Pakistan anymore) but I thought he's captaincy has notably improved. Sounds like he made a dud call at the toss this match, you wonder if he would have done so if he didn't still get so much stick about his insertion of the Poms in 05, but really it was a good toss for Butt to lose, and it sounds like Johnson being a complete basketcase when in England was more of the team's problem than Ricky.

 

[pasag]

Thoughts, anyone?

Great thread

 

[BoyBrumby]

That and 10,000 runs at an average above 50. Reckon it's buying him a little bit more time to find some form than someone without that kind of record.

Didn't watch this series (don't watch cricket involving Pakistan anymore) but I thought he's captaincy has notably improved. Sounds like he made a dud call at the toss this match, you wonder if he would have done so if he didn't still get so much stick about his insertion of the Poms in 05, but really it was a good toss for Butt to lose, and it sounds like Johnson being a complete basketcase when in England was more of the team's problem than Ricky.

Obviously Johnson & (until the very last) Bollinger bowling pus didn't help him, but his field placings weren't really conducive to them bowling the fuller lengths that were needed. Reckon if he'd have given them more protection on the drive they might've been more inclined to pitch it up.

Although neither strikes one as the sharpest tool in the box, so maybe I'm being harsh on Ponting.

 

[fredfertang]

Sack and drop him would be my advice to the Australian selectors - after all we don't want a repeat of 2006/07 do we?

 

[Black_Warrior]

As much as I dislike Ricky Ponting as a cricketing personality (think he is one of the best batsmen in the world though), I dont want him to be sacked for a couple of points.
Yes the toss was a bad call in hindsight. However, you cannot discount the fact that that Australian bowlers were pretty ordinary for most part of the series. When Watson and North are your major wicket takers, you know your front line bowlers were crap.

I think he deserves to stay at least till the Ashes this year. Australia will most likely win the Ashes. If they dont, sack him.

 

[Spark]

Self-quote.

...which is the big unexpected negative, as Ponting's captaincy was dire. Not just the decision to bowl first which even he admits was foolish, but his use of the bowlers and field settings (WHERE WAS THIRD SLIP TODAY) was not good. I hope Clarke has his head around the job, because if this continues he might be getting it soon (presuming that he's the top name on the list and they don't go for Katich for a short time)

Probably two years ago was too early to move to Clarke as pasag suggested in the OP, he hadn't fully established himself as the classy, gritty player that he is now. However Ponting is fast running out of form, excuses, supporters, and time.

 

[Matt79]

Will say that I'm not surprised Watson was the most successful seamer given that it sounds like there was conventional swing to be had. I've thought for a while that he's a better conventional swing bowler than any of the current mainliners for Aus, with the possible exception of Hilfenhaus. For one thing, he actually seems able to grasp pitching up as a concept, and maybe not coincidently, gets the ball to move.

 

[Spark]

Will say that I'm not surprised Watson was the most successful seamer given that it sounds like there was conventional swing to be had. I've thought for a while that he's a better conventional swing bowler than any of the current mainliners for Aus, with the possible exception of Hilfenhaus. For one thing, he actually seems able to grasp pitching up as a concept, and maybe not coincidently, gets the ball to move.

Definitely. People being harsh on Watson. Hilfenhaus didn't look 100% fit in the second test and bowled reasonably well in the first. Even in the second his problem was overpitching which is a better problem to have than Johnson/Bollinger who were short and inaccurate.

 

[BoyBrumby]

I'm sure I'm repeating myself here, but I think it's only because his runs are still needed he's in a job. If Oz abandoned its (weird, IMHO) reluctance to retain ex-skippers as players I think he'd be gone.

Suppose the corollary question is why the reluctance? No other teams seem to have it.