 Australia's cricket captain, Ricky Ponting, has said that he will no longer
play in the T20I format of the game and conveyed his decision to the Australian
management that consists of chief selector, Andrew Hilditch, coach Tim
Nielsen and the vie-captain, Michael Clarke. He has also said that
he will continue playing in the test matches and the ODIs. Vice-captain Michael
Clarke, who is also leading the Aussies in the ODIs now, will now be the skipper
of the T20I team, while Ponting will continue to remain the leader in the five-day
format and the ODIs. However, it is not yet not been made official as to who would
lead the Aussies in the T20I format.
Ponting said, "As I said after the fifth Test in London, I am hoping to
continue playing Test cricket for as long as possible and retiring from the
Twenty20 format gives me the best chance of doing this. I will now have set
periods of rest throughout the Australian summer and while touring which I feel
will be very beneficial."
Already Ponting had gone back home after at the end of the Ashes, and
not featured in the two T20Is and the first few ODIs of the England tour. He
had lost the Ashes 2-1, and despite knowing that it was a trifle difficult to
visualise, had expressed his desire to come back in the 2013 version of the
Ashes in England. The retirement from T20Is will now extend his test match and
ODI careers.
Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly had also done
the same when the T20Is had just about made their mark, by pulling out of the
ICC World T20 format to prolong their careers in the other formats of the game.
However, all three of them still play in the Indian Premier League. Ponting
has also clarified that he will continue to fulfil his IPL contract which will
last for at least one more season for the Kolkata Knight Riders.
Ever since the inception of the T20Is, and apart from the first game where
he smashed a 98 against the Kiwis, he had struggled to get going in the format
and hadn't done too well. Australian Cricket Board's CEO, James Sutherland
said, "We are very supportive of the decision Ricky has made and understanding
of the reasons behind it." He also said that while Ponting would be a huge
loss to the Australian T20I side, it will provide opportunity to many a youngster
to shine in that format.
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