Ricky Ponting
Ricky Ponting
Ricky Thomas Ponting, AO, nicknamed Punter, is an Australian former cricketer who was captain of the Australia national cricket team during its 'golden era'; between 2004 and 2011 in Test cricket and 2002 and 2011 in One Day International cricket. He is a specialist right-handed batsman, slips and close catching fielder, as well as a very occasional bowler. Ponting holds the incredible record of being the only cricketer in the history of Test cricket to be a part of 100...
NationalityAustralian
ProfessionCricket Player
Date of Birth19 December 1974
CityLaunceston, Australia
CountryAustralia
It was a long, hard, tough day. We managed to just sneak through, it was an unbelievable Test match.
We have played so well that the guys have really made my job fairly easy.
It's a song that we sing after we win a Test match. We sing it after every one-day series win. It's been passed down through the generations. It's the culture of the Australian team.
We have to see where Glenn is at, hopefully he is going to be available for the Ashes, which would be good for us if he is because over the past 12-18 months he has been really good for us.
I had big shoes to fill, but the way we have been playing has made the transition easy.
I want to be a dad, first and foremost. I want to be a good father. I've spent so much of my life on the move and travelling around the world that just to set up a home for my family and be a good dad is something that motivates me.
I have made my thoughts on it (sledging) well known over the last couple of years. We are more than happy to be talking to opposition players in the field so long as it is not personal or abusive.
It's always good to win a Test match and if you win it comfortably, it can leave a few psychological marks on opposition sides.
We came up a little bit short with our batting but our new ball bowling was outstanding,
We are looking a lot more confident than we were a couple of days ago,
We're going to need some experienced guys back in the Test side if Glenn doesn't come back, so I'm sure their names will be at the top of the list.
We'll be able to put a stronger team on the ground and we can hopefully get back to playing the way we have been over the past few weeks. If we do, we'll be very hard to beat.
We have relied heavily on Warne and McGrath and, as a captain, I will always go to those two guys because I know they will give me pretty much what I ask for every time,
We were confident of going close -- maybe not as close as it was in the end.