Whenever fans talk about the golden era of the Australian cricket team, the late 90s and the 2000 era always come to mind, with captains Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting at the helm, respectively.
During the times of Waugh, the Aussie side was in the transition phase, but when Ponting took over, the team reached dreamlike heights across the formats.
Under the leadership of Ponting, Australia became the world champion twice, in 2003 and 2007. The Tasmanian was Australia’s most successful Test captain, leading his side to 48 wins in 77 Tests, better than Waugh’s mark of 41 from 57.
Lauding the rich legacy left by Ponting, his former teammate and speedster Brett Lee shared a never heard story involving the Western Australian superstar. Lee shared a story which defines the unbelievable temperament of Ponting. The New South Wales star stated how legendary Aussie cricketer Rod Marsh had predicted that Punter would play a lot of cricket for Australia.
“When he burst onto the scene in the 90s, no one knew what was coming when they saw Ricky Ponting. Well, the rumor is that when he (Ponting) went there in the early 90s, he went there with a cap on. Rod Marsh said, ‘what are you doing?’ He said, ‘I’m batting’. 160 kmph, he goes bang, hitting the ball in front of the square; he did not miss one. And Rod Marsh back then, who was a wonderful coach, and a great selector and a great talent scout said straightaway ‘this guy will play a lot of cricket for Australia’,” Lee said in a video on his YouTube channel.
Definitely Marsh’s words came true as Ponting went on to become an absolute legend of the game and shattered many records both as a batter and as a captain. The ex-skipper finished his career with over 27000 runs and 71 centuries to his name across all forms of the game.