Share

Ponting under siege

Melbourne - Under siege skipper Ricky Ponting should remain captain of Australia despite the spectre of losing the Ashes series against England, team vice-captain Michael Clarke said Sunday.

Clarke vouched his support for Ponting's captaincy as Australia endured one of their worst Test days and now face a mountain to climb to save the fourth Test after England seized command on the opening day.

England routed Australia for 98 and were 59 runs ahead at 157 without loss at the end of a lopsided day's play in the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

It was Australia's lowest total in 133 years of Ashes Tests at the MCG and Ponting's wretched series continued with another cheap dismissal for 10.

He has scores of 10, 51 not out, 0, 9, 12, 1 and now 10 in this series and he faces the grim prospect of losing his third Ashes series as Australian captain over the coming week.

But Ponting received staunch support from his deputy Clarke, who said Ponting had the support of every player in the Australian team.

"I think Ricky has been a wonderful leader and an amazing player for a long time," Clarke told a post-match press conference.

"I think his record in international cricket speaks for itself.

"I know he's copped a fair bit of criticism of late and no doubt he would like to be scoring more runs, as a lot of us would be.

"But I think there's no doubt Ricky should be the captain of Australia, he should be the number three batter for Australia and I know that runs are around the corner for him.

"Every single player in that changeroom supports him, he's too good a player not to turn it around."

Clarke said he was backing Ponting to score a Test-saving double-century when it came to Australia's turn to bat again in the Melbourne Test.

"So hopefully in the second innings here he can come out and score one of those big double-hundreds he has scored before," he said.

Clarke, who has also had a patchy scoring series with only 80 in the second innings of the second Adelaide Test as his standout, said he was disappointed with his shot-making that contributed to his dismissal for 20 on Sunday.

"I thought I played okay today, I was happy that I got to spend some time in the middle," Clarke said.

"But I was again disappointed with my shot (to get out), it was poor shot selection and I thought I was being quite disciplined until I made that shot.

"It's something I have to keep working on, keep trying to get better, but I feel like I am hitting the ball pretty well.

"I was trying to set myself today for a big one, but it was disappointing that I didn't go on and I am going to do it in the second innings."

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
25% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1472 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2251 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE