On Ricky Ponting and his boys

I do not give a damn who won or lost but these are my contentions with Ricky Ponting from New Year’s test match at Sydney 2008 and some related issues:

• My primary and personal objection is the disgusting manner in which he presided over the last two sessions of an international test cricket. The ambience was more hostile even for a Liverpool fan in a Man U pub. Clearly Ponting was blinded by vanity. It was not hard and fair, but foul and sick.
  

• Ricky Ponting’s on field behaviour was undignified for any test captain, forget a champion side. He looked like a juvenile boy desperately wanting to stick it in to someone. In the process he has ended up losing any credibility and respect he had before. Firstly I believe not walking or staying while having nicked, should be a personal decision and not a Team Policy. That is how a cricketer’s moral worth is measured by the viewers. I have before stated that by claiming it as a team policy and Australia are eroding cricketing values.
• Considering that he endorsed such a policy, he stayed and batted after nicking before the world, defending he was not given out by the umpire. Fair enough. But far worse when given a wrong LBW, he swore at the umpire muttered and threw up his bat while at return.Is that in the policy? If he continues to do that often, Clarke, nurtured at the future skipper would convert it into the team policy just like how he stood like a moron after caught at first slip. Ricky Ponting has become a danger of an example.
  

• The worst is Ricky Ponting’s credibility as a player is lost forever. Claming a catch he has grassed and continuing to claim integrity when the replays show otherwise is assassinating your own character on live television. In plain English it is called lying and cheating. In one word: imbecile.
• Exploitation of the trust: he made mockery of the trust of the catching pact which was Kumble's naivety. Well aware that controversial low catches are his responsibility he was trying to convert every potential catch into a controversial one. He did well. To use a popular Australian phrase -- one hundred percent.
  

• Handling difficult behaviour: He has totally failed as a captain to handle difficult behaviour. Aussies bring a lot more baggage into the game that just good cricket is a well known fact. Calling it mental disintegration is their attempt to look up to the Brits. I have no qualms about sledging; we all know it has more or less become a part of international cricket. Got to give, got to take. Saying no to taking while dishing out is baby behaviour. Stuff that cartoons are made of.
  

• Here I need to say a bit on the monkey business. Personally, out of context it isn’t racist, may be its name-calling and at worst an abuse. But it can be seen that in Symonds context i how it could be racist. We all know better about Australians; Symonds hadn’t come up to Harbhajan to talk about the weather. But if in the process his sensibilities were offended which is a sort of irony, Ricky Ponting should have known better.

• Here he has faltered:

• 1. He has assumed it to be racist, a reflection of his thinking. Besides, no one knows if it was said. We dont have evidence for the allegation, what we have for though in two separate videos is Ponting is a Liar. Also, Jayasurya has publicly acknowledged that the reason why he began demolishing the cricket Ball like he did in 96-77 was triggered by taunts of Black Monkey by Australians, an allegation they havent till date denied. It was also a favourite among Australians to ask about the smell of fish while he came to bat, apparently aimed at his roots of being a Fisherman at Motera. These are racial compliments of course.
  
• 2. Far more graver: if it was racist , given the nature of the offence, first thing Ponting should have done is to call on Kumble after the game before lodging the complaint. That he has run to Papa Procter with a motive to get rid off Singh who has grown to be a nightmare to his batting average from a nemesis just shows How Ponting has lost his marbles.I think that is perhaps the most irresponsible thing a cricketing captain has done in recent times. Remember Steve Waugh frowning upon Lara for reporting McGrath who spat at the batsman. I think at that time Waugh said Lara shouldn’t have reported it to the match referee which resulted in heavy fines for McGrath.
  

• Gamesmanship: Nil. As I said, like a Caesar he has been too preoccupied with himself and his winning, he hardly acknowledged India who for everyone to see have been at the receiving end of the amazing cricketing videos at SCG. (Do not forget 2003-04). Grassed catches claimed, umpires being morons when not miles away etc. any sensible captain would have taken a moment to commend the opposition. All Ponting could muster was ‘We won! What a win what a win!’ Gilchrist his deputy soon joined him to tease Tony Greig about the declaration while live on telly. That has become the state of Australian cricket; Boorish and uncouth.
  

• General lack of perception: I alluded to it yesterday. Ponting pounced on a journalist to make a fool of himself and his country, and even after three days after he has gained his illustrative record, which surely shall be unforgettable, he simply lacks capacity to comprehend what has happened.

Not taking away the credit for the Australian win, which I thought was to do with the business of luck, there was no customary ceremony, no congratulations from many test players and commentators. The game has been marked as an umpiring debacle, the opposition captain, a well admired player all over has stated in press conference that Australia lacked cricketing spirit, an international tour is suspended, opposition players are unwilling to play to anymore injustice.
Also, Ponting himself, after celebrations said he cant comment on umpiring decisions because he will be in hot water, chided Tony Grieg for criticising his declaration, attacked a journalist unnecessarily and as we all know foolishly, went and gave deposition for hours at a racial hearing and came back to say that the second test was lot of fun and enjoyment.

It would be for sure, if you are willing to pick up a grassed ball and call it your sixteenth win.
History knows many a great people have stood at that point and always gone in one direction. Down.
Ponting having a laugh, stating for the record there was no way he grounded the Ball. God Bless JL Baird.

Addendum:

In many ways, Ponting has done great favour for cricket and its matter of time Australian legacy shall be broken. It would be very interesting to see How Aussies would play a match against Bangladesh with their mouth shut. Oh ! Ricky You dont know what you have done!

Secondly, Australian cricketers are too blind to see all that happened , because as we all know they are in a culture in a warp syndrome; which is the heart of what the world accuses them of double standards. They quite simply are not aware of a world outside and are unable to appreciate a opposing perspective. It has been there for a while: Remember McGrath threatening to slit Sarwan’s throat on cricket field when Sarwan replied ‘Ask your wife’ when McGrath had sledged him ‘ How does Brian Lara’s dick taste’? it is for the same reason Symonds who commented that Indians were overboard with T20 win has no comments on celebrations now. Based on similar sentiments most Australian newspapers Just forgot to report Australian loss to Pakistan in T20. (Unbelievable! but true). It is for such warp they do not understand that world doesnt know what exactly is a 95% sure catch. Finally, it is for the same reason mental disintegration didn’t have a definition till now.

Not anymore.