Former Australian cricket captain Ricky Ponting heaped praise on the New Zealand cricket team for their exceptional performance in the recent Test series against Team India. But what impressed Ponting the most was the way New Zealand put on a show against the mighty India even without the services of their veteran batter Kane Williamson.
Ricky Ponting still in awe of New Zealand's resounding Test series win over India
New Zealand bagged a historic feat by comprehensively defeating India in a Test series on Indian soil. Their dominant 3-0 series win marked the first time a visiting team had whitewashed India in a home Test series, showcasing their exceptional skill and determination.
Before the start of the Test series against India, New Zealand was not given much of a chance, especially with their captain Kane Williamson sidelined due to injury. However, they defied expectations and scripted history by whitewashing India in their own backyard. New Zealand began the series with a resounding 8-wicket victory at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. They followed this up with a thrilling 113-run win in Pune. The Kiwis then completed the series sweep with a 25-run victory in the final Test.
Ricky Ponting hailed New Zealand's recent Test series win over India as a significant achievement, admitting that he hadn't anticipated such a dominant performance. He attributed India's defeat to their vulnerability against quality spin bowling. In an interview with ICC Review, he elaborated on his views.
"That's a huge result. One that I wasn't expecting, to be honest, more so, when you look at it with Kane Williamson not being there. When you think about his (Williamson’s) record in the subcontinent, the sort of the rock and the leader that he's been for that team,” Ponting said.
"I think the one thing it does probably say is it’s starting to highlight India's vulnerability against good quality spin bowling. It seems as though the skill of the modern Indian batsmen of playing spin is probably not what it used to be,” he added.
Ricky Ponting blames IPL behind Indian batters' struggle against spin
Ricky Ponting further elaborated on India's struggles against spin bowling, suggesting that the changing nature of Indian pitches could be a contributing factor. He noted that India is currently playing on tracks that are more conducive to fast bowling, and they are not facing as much spin bowling as they used to. Ponting added:
“Maybe because they're playing on different wickets in India that are probably for the fast bowlers a bit more, maybe because there are more high-quality fast bowlers in India now that they're not playing as much spin bowling as they did".
“Maybe it's the IPL or how much IPL cricket they're playing that the younger players are learning the game that way rather than the way that players did 15 or 20 years ago," the former Australia captain signed off.
