Ricky Ponting should retire if fails to do well in 2nd innings, says Ian Healy – Cricket News Update
Australia’s former stumper, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757, at Johannesburg.
The Australian batting department is not at its best at the moment, and the biggest worry for the side is the poor form of their ace batsman, Ponting.
The former skipper did nothing impressive in the first innings and lost his wicket without troubling the scorecard.
The Kangaroos achieved a 30-run lead in the first innings, but the home side is still in the second game's driving seat, as they are expected to set a challenging target for http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MJ-Clarke-c1978 and company.
The Aussies are currently 1-0 down in the series, and will have to win the Johannesburg Test in order to avoid an embarassing series defeat.
Hence, Ponting, who is under immense pressure, needs to spark not only for the good of his side but also to retain his place in the national setup.
The cricket pundits have a split opinion on the notion that the time has come for the 36-year-old batsman to call it a day.
Casting his vote against Ponting, Healy recommended him to say good bye to the highest level of the game, only if he remains unsuccessful in hitting a big one in the last innings of the crucial match.
"That's what I hope happens, but watching him last night (Friday), he's double-guessing where he thinks the ball might go, he's double-guessing where he wants the ball to go," Healy said.
"There are faults that have never been in his technique before and I don't like his statistics from the last 12 months. No one who has played for as long as he has should be averaging in the teens. He's been on the wane for some time now and, without something
special, it's time for http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746, claiming 395 dismissals by his superb work behind the stumps - the third highest in the list of most successful wicket-keepers
of all time.
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