Ponting says leaving behind Johnson was solely selector’s decision
Mitchell Johnson’s axing from the Ashes Test squad has left the Australian captain Ricky Ponting quite upset as the skipper has been reported saying leaving behind the pace bowler was solely the decision of selectors.
The Australia strike bowler, who was named as the 2009 ICC Test Player of the Year, failed to make a Test side of Australia ‘for the first time’ in his career after the selectors decided to drop him out of the Adelaide Test squad after
returning wicket-less ‘for the first time’ in the last 39 Test matches. And ‘for the first time’ it seems as if the strong Australian captain was lacking influence over the national selectors in the affairs of team selection.
Prior to the first Ashes Test, Ricky Ponting, exerted considerable pressure over the Australian selectors to bring in the uncapped left-arm spinner Xavier Doherty at the cost of experienced Nathan Hauritz but this time the axing of leading
wicket-taker of Australia has made him unhappy.
"We thought long and hard about the decision that was made with Mitch. We honestly think it will make our attack better for this game. When it's big decisions like this one that are to be made, it's wholly and solely made by the selection
panel," an Australian daily broadsheet newspaper quoted Ponting. "Of course, they ask for my input and the coach's input but ... they're the ones that make the decisions," he added further.
The bowling of Australia was quite disappointing during England’s second innings in the drawn Brisbane opener as the side failed to earn a breakthrough after centurion Andrew Strauss’s wicket. All the three batsmen of England struck centuries.
The record breaking partnership between Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott helped the tourists amass massive 571 runs in their second innings after they were rolled over for 260 in the 1st innings. Selectors recalled Doug Bollinger and Ryan Harris
to bolster the bowling attack.
The daily suggested that the decision to leave Johnson behind could have been Greg Chappell’s proposal. Greg Chappell has recently joined the selection panel and will, in all probability, take over the chairmanship from Andrew Hilditch,
the incumbent chairman of Cricket http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 whose contract is due to expire at the conclusion of 2011 World Cup.
Responding to the question whether the selection panel would show some leniency to the pacer as well like they had shown towards Michael Hussey, the Australian captain said that Andrew Hilditch can better answer the question.
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