Ricky Ponting’s journey as a Test batsman began almost exactly ten years back, and he’s come a long way in that period
S Rajesh01-Jan-2006
Ricky Ponting: 100 matches, and playing better than ever © Getty Images
Ricky Ponting’s journey as a Test batsman began almost exactly ten years back, and he’s come a long way in that period. From a talented but impetuous 21-year-old who struggled for consistency, Ponting has blossomed into the mainstay of Australia’s batting line-up, scoring runs against almost all attacks in all climes without sacrificing his flair.Ponting’s progression to the 100-Test mark shows just how he has grown in stature in the second half of his career. In his first 40 matches, he had only seven hundreds, in his next 60, he added 19 to his tally – that’s almost one every three matches. In fact, in his last 49 Tests, he averages 67. (Click here for Ponting’s career summary.)
1-20 1183 39.43 2/ 7 21-40 1292 53.83 5/ 5 41-60 1498 51.66 6/ 4 61-80 2136 68.90 7/ 6 81-99 1881 67.18 6/ 10His rich and consistent form over the last four years means that in any discussion about the best batsman in the world, his name figures prominently. Based strictly on numbers, no batsman has had more success than Ponting since 2002. During this period, 17 hundreds have flowed from his bat, which translates into one every 2.76 Tests – at this rate, he will go past Sunil Gavaskar’s tally of 34 in just 25 Tests. Sachin Tendulkar is currently nine in front, but if Ponting continues his run-glut, he might have a realistic chance of catching up.
Ponting 47 4808 68.6817/ 17 Jacques Kallis 39 3703 67.3213/ 17 Rahul Dravid 41 3746 64.5811/ 16 Brian Lara 38 3983 61.2713/ 12 Inzamam-ul-Haq 30 2753 61.179/ 12 Matthew Hayden 52 4975 58.5219/ 16 Virender Sehwag 35 3085 54.129/ 9 Sachin Tendulkar 37 2904 53.778/ 11His numbers against each side show he’s got runs facing all of them. The only team he averages less than 40 against is Bangladesh – it’s unlikely he’ll be spending sleepless nights over that statistic.
Zimbabwe 3 290 96.671/ 1 Pakistan 10 1061 81.614/ 3 New Zealand 11 808 73.452/ 4 West Indies 15 1372 65.336/ 4 South Africa 11 924 54.353/ 5 India 15 1253 52.204/ 4 Sri Lanka 10 711 47.401/ 5 England 21 1402 41.235/ 4 Bangladesh 2 69 34.500/ 1Ponting’s runs have come against all teams in all conditions, but the one country he has struggled in is India: in eight matches he averages a miserable 12. He makes up for it, though, with his performances against them at home.
In India 8 172 12.280/ 1 In Australia 7 1081 108.104/ 3And unlike many top-class batsmen who have been bogged down by captaincy, the additional burden hasn’t impacted Ponting’s batting ability at all. Despite a few question-marks being raised over his tactical acumen, Ponting the batsman has flowered since he took over the leadership mantle.
As captain 24 2169 57.076/ 11 Not as captain 75 5821 55.9720/ 21Perhaps Ponting’s biggest achievement has been the manner in which he wrested the No. 3 position in a strong Australian batting line-up and made it his own. Ponting’s predecessor at that position had been David Boon, who had scored 4412 runs at one-down, with 13 centuries and 20 fifties, at an average of 45.48. These were imposing numbers, and Boon was clearly a tough act to follow. But Australia have been blessed with successors who’ve outdone the original masters. Just as Adam Gilchrist ensured that Ian Healy wasn’t missed, Ponting took over from Boon and made an even greater success of the No. 3 spot.In fact, in the all-time list of the best No. 3 batsmen, Ponting figures in third place, behind only Don Bradman and Wally Hammond (qualification: 30 Tests). Among the other Australian greats at that position, Ian Chappell averages 50.94 (4279 runs from 54 Tests), while Neil Harvey managed 46.67 (3454 from 54).
Don Bradman 40 5078 103.6320/ 10 Wally Hammond 37 3440 74.7814/ 4 Ricky Ponting 60 5544 63.7219/ 20 Viv Richards 45 3508 61.5412/ 14 Rahul Dravid 77 6518 60.9117/ 31 Brian Lara 39 3244 58.987/ 12
