Aussies point finger at Punter

It can take years to build up a reputation as a great sporting captain, but it doesn't take long for that reputation to be trampled on.

In the space of around an hour on the penultimate day of the final test between India and Australia Ricky Ponting found out just how quick the tables can turn.

Ponting called on the wiles of part-time bowlers to speed up the overate in a crucial stage of the match, with India teetering at 166 for six in the second innings, in a bid to speed up a slow overate that could potentially lead the skipper to be banned for the next test match.

The result was almost inevitable, India's Mahendra Singh Donhi and Harbhajan Singh piled on the runs and the hosts gained the upper hand in Nagpur before skittling the Aussies to claim the game and a 2-0 series win.

Suddenly Ponting was vilified as the clueless instigator of his team's demise, a man who cracks when put under pressure and his very future as the captain of the world's number one ranked team was called into question.

The blood-thirsty post mortems went straight for the Aussie skipper, pinning the blame well and truly on a Ponting-shaped pinata and completely glossing over the fact that India had been by far the better bowling and batting side over 20 days of engrossing test cricket.

Ignored also was the track record of the man who had taken on the unenviable task of following in the footsteps of Steve Waugh, been faced with retirements of the likes of Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Adam Gilchrist and Justin Langer yet still coming into this series he had lost four of 44 tests – and, of course, there is the small matter of two world cup wins.

Now I'm not saying Ponting didn't make mistakes, or that his past success makes him immune from criticism, but surely to call for his head is beyond the ridiculous.

Australians simply have to take a very un-Australian dose of realism and accept the fact that their team is just not as good as it used to be.

More importantly they should realise Ponting is still the man to lead this transitional side and has not become a cricketing dunderhead overnight.

Just look at the way the side bounced back under his leadership after the 2005 Ashes defeat.
One man who should take careful note of Ponting's treatment is new England skipper Kevin Pietersen.

A couple of months ago KP was the flavour of the moment as he lead England to a 4-0 win over South Africa in his first one day series.

But after the debacle of the Stanford Series and England's humiliation against a Mumbai in a tour match, he seems to have lost his midas touch somewhat.

There is a lot of cricket to be played between now and next summer's Ashes series and while Pietersen must be delighted with the way Ponting and his men struggled in India, the experience should serve as a warning as to how quickly things can change.