Cricket round-up: Ricky Ponting effectively retires from one-day cricket

Ricky Ponting

Ricky Ponting, one of Australia’s most successful captains, has effectively retired from one-day cricket but is determined to play on in the Test format despite being in the twilight of his career.

The veteran batsman’s form has been questionable for some time, overcoming a two-year period without a Test-match century only last month and with just one ODI hundred in that time too, but it is in 2012 that Ponting’s aptitude has taken a nose dive.

In the on-going Commonwealth Bank Tri-series, the 38-year-old managed just seven as his best score whilst standing in as captain against India in Australia’s fifth match, and he was subsequently dropped from the one-day team for the first time in his 17-year career.

Just a day later, Ponting announced he was not in national selector John Inverarity’s plans for the 50-over side as they build towards the 2015 World Cup, and at such a late stage in his career the decision all but marks his retirement from the format.

"It's a little bit hard to come here today and say I'm retiring when I've already been left out of the side," Ponting told a Sydney press conference said. “I don't expect to play one-day international cricket for Australia anymore and I'm pretty sure the selectors don't expect to pick me either.

“I will continue playing Test cricket and I'll continue playing for Tasmania as well," Ponting added. “I think I've proved to myself and to everybody else that I'm still capable of dominating Test cricket as I did in the last series against India.

“I'm looking forward to getting back and playing the last couple of Shield games for Tasmania this year and then heading to the West Indies hopefully with some runs under my belt.”

In the CB series on Wednesday, Sri Lanka threw a spanner in the points table by beating India to move above them into second place, winning by 51 runs in Brisbane. Sri Lanka’s old guard set a firm platform with a 95-partnership between openers Mahela Jayawardene (45) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (51) followed up by a great middle-order effort from Dinesh Chandimal (38) and Lahiru Thirimanne (62).

India’s own seasoned elite fought hard with a half century from Virat Kohli (66) the most substantial effort but the tail end fell away at the crucial time and with Mahendra Dhoni rested there was no man to finish off the innings.

And finally, some last over heroics from young fast bowler Marchant de Lange clinched a third twenty20 victory for South Africa and the series with New Zealand. The Black Caps needed just a run a ball and were on course for victory with Kane Williamson and James Franklin capable of scoring quickly but 21-year-old de Lange took two wickets in the final over and defended the three runs needed to win.

Lyall Thomas

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