Pace Bowlers Who Could Perform Better than Ricky Ponting With The Bat

[Cabinet96]

Peter Siddle

Ever since the Ashes last year I've thought he should be batting in the top order . He was only the 3rd player to get double figures in both innings at Newlands.

[centurymaker]

Sanga > Ponting atm

fixed

[aussie tragic]

To answer the thread title, how about Shane Watson, Dan Christian, Moises Henriques and Mitch Marsh

Also spinners Nathan Hauritz, Steve O'Keefe and Steven Smith....

[Burgey]

In this comparison, if Ponting is Viv, who is Kallis?

Miandad or Chappell

Edit: I should say Viv > Ponting, ftr.

[Burgey]

I'm not. Cook will need 4 years like his last one to even be anywhere near Ponting, he won't do it as he isn't that good. If he did do it he'd have done it in an era with lesser bowlers anyway and in a far less stylish way than Ponting ever did. Cook will always be a level below Ponting even after he breaks all the English batting records.

Ah I see what you mean. Apologies.

[uvelocity]

hope his stubborness doesn't lead to him losing another couple of points..i.e he should retire if things don't improve for him over the next month.

Aussie culture 101 - it's about winning, we couldn't give a brass razoo* about averages. Having said that, Ryan Harris

*give a ****

[silentstriker]

I think you are kidding yourself if you think the Aussie players don't care about their personal stats - regardless of what the correct thing to say in public is.

[Marcuss]

Harbhajan Singh

[Ruckus]

I think you are kidding yourself if you think the Aussie players don't care about their personal stats - regardless of what the correct thing to say in public is.

Well I think there'd be a few 'lesser' players who don't really care about their stats. Like Haddin or someone - because they know they aren't exactly pushing the boundaries of excellence, so why would they really care what their average is as long they are doing a good enough job in the team? Definately agree with you for players like Ponting though. I doubt there's really been any top tier player who hasn't cared about their personal stats, even if they don't admit it. That's part of the reason why players like Ponting etc. have hit such heights - they want to be the best they can for their team, but they take it beyond that and also strive to be best in the world. That's basically what makes a champion, someone who has extremely high personal ambitions on top of everything else.

[uvelocity]

stats are for ****s

[Spikey]

well hey since it got linked let's bump it


Give me Dale Steyn. Josh Hazlewood may not be in the runs but he can at least stick around

[silentstriker]

Well I think there'd be a few 'lesser' players who don't really care about their stats. Like Haddin or someone - because they know they aren't exactly pushing the boundaries of excellence, so why would they really care what their average is as long they are doing a good enough job in the team? Definately agree with you for players like Ponting though. I doubt there's really been any top tier player who hasn't cared about their personal stats, even if they don't admit it. That's part of the reason why players like Ponting etc. have hit such heights - they want to be the best they can for their team, but they take it beyond that and also strive to be best in the world. That's basically what makes a champion, someone who has extremely high personal ambitions on top of everything else.

Yup exactly. You'd expect every great player to have personal milestones like that in mind and try hard to achieve them within the context of playing for the team. That Aussie culture 101 is as bs as the 'australianism' that's trotted out (interestingly only when they win and not when they're bundled out for 47). And I admire the Aussie sports culture and i wish India had some of that but lets not go overboard here.

[Ruckus]

Yeah I agree. Back in the days of Border and co, I genuinely believe Australia did have a hardened 'never say never' kind of ethos but these days I'm inclined to think the opposite. That's one of the major problems in Australian cricket these days; there aren't enough gritty players out there willing to put in the hard yards. Those sterotyped qualities about Aussie sports culture are losing there validity very quickly now.

[uvelocity]

Yup exactly. You'd expect every great player to have personal milestones like that in mind and try hard to achieve them within the context of playing for the team. That Aussie culture 101 is as bs as the 'australianism' that's trotted out (interestingly only when they win and not when they're bundled out for 47). And I admire the Aussie sports culture and i wish India had some of that but lets not go overboard here.

bah you don't see Australian fans go missing just because we are losing, we just get really ****ty about it. And expect different.

[LongHopCassidy]

Ponting IMO has done enough for Australian cricket to deserve to retire on his own terms. He's been prepared to emasculate himself by playing on as Australia's tactical bridesmaid, and he's better placed than most to know when he'll never get back into Test-standard form. I for one trust him to make that call when he believes it.

So far, he doesn't yet.