Yes.You are right.The nibbling feeling at the back of your mind about the one name missing from the list(the reason for me not preceding Dravid previously with an 'and') which statistically speaking,is the newest name in the community and the last in it deserves a mention.Sure does.No doubt about it.The problem is-I just couldn't figure out how I could include the name of a person who figures last in the clan of these stalwarts and yet,is the most different of them all.The person ruining my peace of mind is Ricky Thomas Ponting.
A test player/captain or umpire can never be consistently inhuman.And there can be no better example than Ponting.Debuting at the age of 20,after being an on and off part of a team which was,and still is meticulously grilled through by probably the toughest selection committee in the world,Ponting has not only cemented his place as one of the greatest of his kind but also more often than not, engraved it with a chisel in the shape and form of his loyal kookaburra.
A Test Captain can never consistently out-perform his own self.But what better counter example than Ponting to have consistently scored at an average of more than 74 after being named captain-not just for a tenuous term of a few months but for a mighty period of more than 4 years and counting.Does it speak volumes of a player at the peak of his international career?Not unless the volume is that of a million watts of a digital sub woofer system.It merely gives us a vague picture of a man who could never simply satisfy his explosive hunger with just frightening commitment,hard work, desire and such otherwise mortal qualities.He has always wanted to more than just swat or caress or punch or pull or flick or loft or drive anything thrown at him;be it a 50 over old,reverse swinging,leathery hard English cricket ball thrown at him at a quarter Mach by Steven Harmison on a bouncy oval wicket or for some other batsman, from the very mentioned clan-an unplayable doosra from the wily Muralidaran on a 4th day pitch at Kandy.Ricky Ponting has always been above all that.
No test captain can be expected to consistently win every test match for his nation.Some of the many captains at the highest level have been part of controversies ranging from claiming a "non catch'',to resorting to racial accusations when on the verge of defeat to having won and lost games-sometimes many at a trot,sometimes faltering ludicrously on your way to a 16-0 win/loss world record against "taken for granted" opponents who might steal away an entire match from your grasp right in front of your very eyes.Just like that.And what better example than Ricky Ponting who has been there,done it all,just like the elite group of men mentioned at the start.He never quit.He hasn't yet.He proved he didn't have to.May be this is one of the very few similarities that you would find between him and them.
Maulings from top notch international teams once in a while in your tenure as a test captain is part and parcel of a game. Atleast that is what the lesser mortals would think.After a mostly flawless reign in
the saddle,it was time for the 2005 ashes series.England,as would have any other team playing against the aussies,were labelled the underdogs.An understatement to say the least.After his own dismal performance,by his standards,of a 40 run aggregate with just one century in five matches,the mighty aussies and their billion dollar ego recieved a dent,the cost of whose repair would more than outrun the repairs of a Maybach banging head-on with a semi.At the end of a previously un-fathomable 2-1 loss,Pontings army,which had on more ocassions than one could gather,been called the Goliaths of the cricketing world,were brought down to ground with a resonating thud by a 9 year old cousin of David like Englishmen.Just like that.When i mentioned Ponting doesn't quit,it was in no meagre standards.The "re-match" of the Ashes in 2007 saw Ponting determined to give back to the English what he thought they deserved,to such an extent,that may be even the refree who stood politely at the time of the toss,would have decided to keep a safe distance from ponting,merely seeing the look on his face.The eyes never lied,they said.So true.So very true.The series saw Ponting at his personal best aggregating 82 with a 196 in the first match,followed up by fiersome aggression and talented cricket of such quality that lifted up not only the 10 other men on the field but also a whole nation.After piling up a mammoth 576 runs in 5 matches,he was IN-justifiably just given the man of the series award.Injustfiably?Yes.With the kind of a spirit a man could show after putting resurrection and the mythical phoenix bird to shame,Ponting should have probably been adjudged the Man of both the Ashes 2005 and '06 for two very contrasting purposes.Revenge was never before so sweet.Ponting restored the Aussie pride in a manner in which probably only he or Waugh could have done.All in a phase of one and a half months.Just like that.
No test player should be expected to be named best player in the world two years in a row.Ricky Ponting,as we came to know,was not just any test player.After the ashes retribuition he was named ICC player of the year in both 2006 and 2007,after already having been named Wisden cricketer of the year in '06 as well.He was also named the vice captain of the superficial 'Greatest Australian team' ever.
Failures and success were always considered to be two sides of a coin.A close look into Ponting's wallet would reveal a 100 dollars worth of such coins.With 35 centuries at a 'modest' average of 59 with many more years on hand ,Ricky Ponting,at this moment, is standing alongside a group of people,whom test cricketers aspire to be like.When he is done,it wont be a surprise,if he went on to lead his class.If there ever existed one.
Just like that.
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