Ponting's fall from stratospheric heights
- Thread starter aussie1st
- Start date
barto123
School Cricketer
I think the hair on his arms is starting to affect his pull shot.... all that hair is making his arms heavier, therefore harder for him to smoothly perform the shot. Perhaps a wax will bring him back to his former glory.
CaptainOZ
Panel of Selectors
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2004
Good point :laugh
Yeah the pictures don't lie
His hair receded more than that left picture, and he was developing a large bald spot on his crown as well. That's when he signed up for the expensive toupee.
Have you noticed how Ponting never takes his cap off anymore? And when he scores a century, he doesn't take off his helmet? He's concerned the wig will come off or become dislodged.
Doug Bollinger is another one who got a wig. You might recall that Bollinger used to have the nickname "Bald Eagle". Advanced Hair Studios started him off with a thin wig at first, and they've now replaced it with a thicker one. They must be using freshly applied glue right before each day of a Test match, because being a fast bowler he needs to take his cap off.
Have a close look at Ponting and Bollingers front hairlines. Can't see it? That's because they have a rug.
At least Bollinger was upfront about it. Ponting's been trying to keep his hairpiece quiet, but do a Google search on either of them and you'll find they both signed up for it.
rahuldravidfan
International Cricketer
- Joined
- May 14, 2008
- Online Cricket Games Owned
Baldy :laugh
Ricky Ponting- are you Matthew Hayden in disguise? :laugh
Ricky Ponting- are you Matthew Hayden in disguise? :laugh
Haha, he's a beast no doubt.
That article on Cricinfo today that is linked on the 2nd page has a quote from Ponting saying, "if I get my elbow right then I think you'll see me playing with a lot more freedom"
and "From where I batted in the second innings in the Sydney Test, I'll have had about six or seven days without batting"
My first reaction to that was, why the hell was he playing?? He obviously needs the time off... I'm guessing he'll be getting plenty of time off in the ODIs.
As I've mentioned in other threads, Ponting just has no patience at present. He hardly leaves the ball, he barely plays a defensive shot. I wanted to confirm my suspicion that he's just trying to score too quickly.
The original article broke up his career into 3 parts but I wanted to add strike rate:
til Dec 31, 1999: average 44.51 (S/R: 48.99)
Jan 1, 2000 - Dec 31, 2006: average 65.73 (S/R:62.61)
Jan 1, 2007 - til now: average 41.44 (S/R: 62.11)
He's still striking at the same rate even though his average has dived. I think he's still trying to dominate like those awesome middle 7 years and he just can't play with the precision he used to. Now he's forcing shots that would have been played well in the early 00s, but now he can't guarantee their success. He just needs to tighten up and be more careful. But, I'm very skeptical he'll ever be able to do that and I think the only way he'll be able to change is by changing his role in the team. Move him up or down. I think he'd be a great ODI opener, while in Tests he might need to go down to #5. Hopefully a change of role would bring a change of mindset.
TumTum
International Cricketer
drainpipe32
Chairman of Selectors
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2008
- Online Cricket Games Owned
RDF, are you spastic?
I don't think making him open in ODI's against anew ball will help. In tests, moving him down the order temporarily might not be so bad.
angryangy
ICC Chairman
- Joined
- Oct 1, 2004
In the last 6 series his strike rate has been around 67. Against Pakistan he's up to 80 so far. Of course, strike rate only shows how well he's going when the shots come off. Things like playing and missing don't add to it.
His strike rate in his earlier years were probably more a case of him lifting his strike rate as the innings progressed rather than scoring at 60 straight away. Although he definitely had the ability to score quick if the situation required but in his prime he usually got himself in before going for the more attacking shots.
P
pcfan123
Guest
TumTum
International Cricketer
Hairy palms as well?
Lol no.
I wonder if Ponting has any relatives that are Tassie Devils :laugh
TumTum
International Cricketer
When was the last time Ponting didn't score a home ton in Tests?
Robelinda
International Coach
Probably 2000/01 vs WI. Didnt score one in 98/99 either vs England, or 96/97 or 95/96. Those are the only summers without tons, off the top of my head!
sohum
Executive member
I was reading the Ponting vs. Tendulkar thread from 3 years back a couple of weeks ago and it's amusing that I was the only one who seemed to think that Ponting wouldn't continue averaging 60 for the rest of his career. Ponting was in a purple patch--an extended one of course, but that's no surprise given that he's a great player. He's still going to be a great player, but he's getting older, his reflexes are slowing and his body is aging. He'll still score runs by the buckets, but the consistency will probably lower if he tries to hold on to the way he was playing when he was in his prime.
In many ways, Ponting's and Tendulkar's careers are very similar, but slightly offset. For example, in a string of 12 years between 1993 and 2004, Tendulkar average (per year):
91.42, 70.00, 29.00, 41.53, 62.50, 80.87, 68.00, 63.88, 62.68, 55.68, 17.00, 91.50
There were three blips in that period--1995, 1996 and 2003. One can say that that was Tendulkar's extended purple patch. Punter had a similar run from 1999 to 2006:
63.07, 63.60, 38.60, 70.93, 100.20, 41.00, 67.13, 88.86
His stretch of 8 years contained just 2 blips, which interestingly is the same percentage of blips in Tendulkar's purple patch. Ponting was far more prolific than Tendulkar in his prime period, scoring 8114 runs @ 65.43 with 31 centuries (in an 8-year period) compared with 8794 runs @ 61.49 with 30 centuries (in a 12-year period) that Tendulkar amassed.
After this extended run that everyone thought they were immortal, both players fell from grace, slightly. In 2005-2006, Tendulkar averaged well below is average in a year, with outputs of 44.40 and 24.27. Even in 2008 he was down to 48.31. Similarly, Ponting has had 3 straight years of "anomalies" from 2007 to 2009: 38.40, 47.28 and 38.77.
Tendulkar adjusted his game and his priorities and has come back with a second wave. He averaged 67.62 last year and looks like a run-scoring machine again, albeit one in a more balanced line-up and with less pressure. As it stands now, Ponting will have to make a decision whether he continues to hold on to the past or begins thinking about his priorities in the game. If Ponting manages to reinvent his form and find that second breath, he will overtake Tendulkar in the statistical battle for best Test batsman of their generation.
In many ways, Ponting's and Tendulkar's careers are very similar, but slightly offset. For example, in a string of 12 years between 1993 and 2004, Tendulkar average (per year):
91.42, 70.00, 29.00, 41.53, 62.50, 80.87, 68.00, 63.88, 62.68, 55.68, 17.00, 91.50
There were three blips in that period--1995, 1996 and 2003. One can say that that was Tendulkar's extended purple patch. Punter had a similar run from 1999 to 2006:
63.07, 63.60, 38.60, 70.93, 100.20, 41.00, 67.13, 88.86
His stretch of 8 years contained just 2 blips, which interestingly is the same percentage of blips in Tendulkar's purple patch. Ponting was far more prolific than Tendulkar in his prime period, scoring 8114 runs @ 65.43 with 31 centuries (in an 8-year period) compared with 8794 runs @ 61.49 with 30 centuries (in a 12-year period) that Tendulkar amassed.
After this extended run that everyone thought they were immortal, both players fell from grace, slightly. In 2005-2006, Tendulkar averaged well below is average in a year, with outputs of 44.40 and 24.27. Even in 2008 he was down to 48.31. Similarly, Ponting has had 3 straight years of "anomalies" from 2007 to 2009: 38.40, 47.28 and 38.77.
Tendulkar adjusted his game and his priorities and has come back with a second wave. He averaged 67.62 last year and looks like a run-scoring machine again, albeit one in a more balanced line-up and with less pressure. As it stands now, Ponting will have to make a decision whether he continues to hold on to the past or begins thinking about his priorities in the game. If Ponting manages to reinvent his form and find that second breath, he will overtake Tendulkar in the statistical battle for best Test batsman of their generation.
Excellent stuff Sohum. It's my hope that Ponting can adapt his game a bit more to his current level of play. What do you think, has Tendulkar changed his method? eg. Put away certain shots or playing with different intent? His role in the batting order is still the same, so I'm wondering whether it was mental or physical problem in those blip years.
I think part of Ponting's recent slump - and an issue he'll never complain about - is his wrist which I think he's been having problems with for a couple of years now. Couple that with his recent elbow problem and it's obvious he's not quite right. But I think he's got some mental issues too, particularly with his shot selection. Whether he gets his wrist right eventually, I'm not sure, but hopefully we can see him back to a 55+ average guy because he's great fun to watch play.
I think part of Ponting's recent slump - and an issue he'll never complain about - is his wrist which I think he's been having problems with for a couple of years now. Couple that with his recent elbow problem and it's obvious he's not quite right. But I think he's got some mental issues too, particularly with his shot selection. Whether he gets his wrist right eventually, I'm not sure, but hopefully we can see him back to a 55+ average guy because he's great fun to watch play.
