‘Only he could have pulled that off': Courageous Ricky Ponting move leaves cricket world speechless
Australian cricket legend Ricky Ponting has drawn widespread praise from the cricket world after stunningly convincing players to remain in India so the Indian Premier League (IPL) could continue after a ceasefire was called.
Pontings' Punjab Kings' (PBKS) match against the Delhi Capitals (DC) in Dharamsala was called off midway through the first innings on Thursday due to a blackout stemming from air raid warnings in nearby Jammu and Pathankot.
And as a result of India's bubbling cross-border tension with Pakistan, the IPL was suspended with many overseas players and coaches boarding the first flights home.
But after a ceasefire was agreed between the two warring nations on Saturday, Ponting – who was on a plane ready to leave the country when news of the ceasefire broke – reportedly disembarked and encouraged those anxious players on board the flight to remain in India so the IPL could continue.
According to local media, including Times of India, Australian players like Xavier Bartlett and Aaron Hardie were given serious pep talks by Ponting before agreeing to follow the 50-year-old's lead and remaining in India, leading to PBKS CEO Satish Menon praising the Australian cricket captain's leadership and courage.
'It shows Ponting's character. Only he could have pulled that off,' Menon told India Today.
But Ponting wasn't done, he also reportedly called several of his players bound for other flights to encourage them to stay behind.
'All PBKS foreign players barring Marco Jansen never left India,' Bharat Sharma told the Press Trust of India.
'Ponting deboarded the flight home after the ceasefire announcement and gave a pep talk to players ensuring they all don't take a flight back home from Delhi on Saturday night.'
The cricket world was blown away by Ponting's courage and leadership.
'An overseas coach who has little knowledge of the India-Pakistan history, it takes serious guts to stay. Ricky Ponting is damn serious about ending the IPL trophy drought for Punjab,' one fan wrote after news of Pontings' actions broke.
'Ricky Ponting hats off for staying back and asking your boys to also stay back in India it takes lots of Guts and Courage Punjab Kings are Here to Win The IPL,' another said.
'Ricky Ponting is lion hearted person, that's why he saw all the success through his career. Legend of game,' another wrote.
PBKS are in the race to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2014, and the franchise is hopeful that they will have a full-strength team if the IPL restarts as expected.
Punjab Kings are currently third on the IPL table with 15 points.
Several Australian cricket stars return home as IPL decision looms
The IPL board is reportedly set to meet on Monday (AEDT) to discuss when the league can resume, which could come as early as next weekend if the ceasefire is to continue.
But the ceasefire is already on shaky ground.
Both sides have accused the other of breaking the agreement already after four days of missile, drone and artillery attacks which killed at least 60 people and sent thousands fleeing, in the worst violence since India and Pakistan's last open conflict in 1999.
And since the ceasefire was agreed India has accused Pakistan of violating the deal and declared it would be retaliating.
A short while later, Pakistan then pointed the finger at India and said attacks were still being carried out in some areas despite the agreement.
But even if the ceasefire does hold and the IPL restarts, with only 12 regular-season matches plus finals still to play, many Aussies will likely not return amid safety concerns.
Several Aussie stars such as Mitchell Starc, Tim David, Josh Inglis and Marcus Stoinis all returned home on Sunday and are unlikely to return to India.
While the Sunrisers Hyderabad, Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings are already out of finals contention, with each only having one or two games left and mathematically out of contention.
So the likes of Pat Cummins, Travis Head and Nathan Ellis who all are contracted to those sides would almost certainly not return irrespective of if the tournament continues.
While Starc, Inglis and Mitch Marsh are among squads still in finals contention but have returned Down Under and are no guarantees to return.
The IPL window is supposed to close on May 25, as Australia begins preparations for the World Test Championship final against South Africa starting on June 11.
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