Injury crisis in team is an opportunity for youngsters: Ponting
Guwahati:Australian skipper Ricky Ponting has said that the spate of injuries plaguing his team, has given a chance to young players to experience international cricket. Moises Henriques, Clint McKay, Jon Holland and Burt Cockley, who were
called in following injuries to Brett Lee, Tim Paine, James Hopes and Peter Siddle,
had no international one-day experience before the tour to India, but the crisis
has expedited their progression. Ponting also said that early national call-ups
would encourage youngsters to be supporters of international cricket ahead of
the potentially more lucrative Twenty20 competitions. "I've made no secret that
I'm a bit worried about some of the attitudes of younger players, who were being
attracted with the amount of money that's around in the Champions League and IPL,"
The Age quoted Ponting, as saying. "I've made it very common knowledge over the
last couple of years that I just hope the next generation of players coming through
have the same sort of want and desire to play as much international cricket as
I have, because that's what it's all about as far as I'm concerned," he added.
Ponting, who retired from international Twenty20 cricket to play more 50-over
cricket and better Test cricket over the next few years, further revealed that
young players coming into the team be given a pep talk about where their cricketing
priorities lie. "One thing we always try and stress, as the more experienced players
in this team, is just how much of an honour it is to get a chance to play for
Australia. We really ram that home to the young guys coming in, and every young
bloke I've seen come in has accepted just how big and special it is to play for
Australia," Ponting said. "That's my job and Huss' (vice-captain Mike Hussey's)
job and Michael Clarke's job, as the senior players in the side at the moment,
just to keep reinforcing that to those blokes. Hopefully, they'll want to do what
some of our older blokes have done," he added.
