Australian captain Ricky Ponting today admitted that the farcical finish
to the cricket World Cup took a bit of the gloss off his side's third consecutive
triumph.
Australia's win in the final against Sri Lanka was marred by some poor
officiating.
With the Sri Lankan batsmen accepting an offer for bad light,
the Australian team started celebrating their victory before the umpires incorrectly
said the match was not over and made them complete the last three overs in near
darkness.
"We were running around like lunatics thinking we'd won,
when (umpire) Aleem Dar came over and told me, 'well no, actually the
game wasn't over yet'," Ponting told 'Sydney Morning Herald' on his return
from the Caribbean.
"To be honest, I really thought he was joking," Ponting
continued. "We get on pretty well, Aleem and I, and we like to have a joke
now and then, but I thought this particular one was extremely poorly timed,"
he said.
"I'd actually planned the bowling so that Glenn McGrath could bowl
the last over of the match and his career, so I guess we were denied that opportunity
as well," Ponting said.
"I think they've learned their lessons there and I am
sure next time they officiate in big games like that they'll know the rules
inside out." Ponting and his team-mates were welcomed by a small group
of family and friends and a sizeable media contingent at the airport.
The skipper said the team had celebrated long and hard since
claiming the World Cup for a third straight time.
"(I am feeling) more refreshed than I was two days ago, that is for sure,"
he said.
|
