Ponting stands strong on prediction for Border-Gavaskar Trophy

Australia great Ricky Ponting has responded to Ravi Shastri’s prediction for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and provided further clarity on why he expects his former side to prove too strong during the upcoming Test series.

In a previous interaction with host Sanjana Ganesan on The ICC Review, Ponting had provided his prediction of a 3-1 series win for Australia in the eagerly-awaited five-match series and the Aussie great said he won't be swayed by the thoughts of former India coach Shastri.

Shastri was recently asked for a scoreline prediction in the latest instalment of The ICC Review and he believed the result would be 3-1 to either side, but believed India could get ahead if they made a fast start.

Gavaskar recall won't sway decision

When Ganesan tried to get Ponting’s take on Shastri’s call, the 49-year-old recalled a lighter moment involving Sunil Gavaskar from the 2020/21 edition of the Trophy, before sticking to his guns.

Ponting recalled how his 2-1 prediction in favour of Australia backfired after he discussed it with Gavaskar in the aftermath of India’s routing in the first Test in Adelaide in 2020, in which India were bowled out for 36, their lowest-ever Test total.

“I think I might have said 2-1 at the start,” Ponting told The ICC Review.

“And then Sunny looked at me and said, ‘It will be 2-1, but it will be 2-1 (in favour of) India.’ And I thought there was no way in the world that they could bounce back after losing the way they did in Adelaide. But they did.”

Back then, India had followed up a woeful performance in Adelaide with a memorable fightback in the absence of several first-choice players, and secured wins in Melbourne and Brisbane along with a gritty draw in Sydney, to take the series 2-1.

This ensured that India won back-to-back series Down Under and continued their undefeated run in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy since 2017.

But Ponting was hopeful that Shastri’s call wouldn’t get the better of him this time around.

“Sunny got the better of me there. So I hope Ravi doesn't get the better of me this time. So I'm going to stick with the 3-1 Australia," he added.

Ponting reasons his call

Ponting, the highest-ever run-getter for Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, believes the tourists are well-settled going into the series despite their recent adverse home result against New Zealand, being fully aware of their line-up ahead of the Perth Test.

“India will be pretty certain of what team they're going to play (in Perth). They've known for a while that Rohit probably wasn't going to be here,” Ponting said, noting media reports related to Rohit Sharma’s absence.

“They've probably known for a while that Bumrah was going to be captain.

“So they've probably known what holes they've needed to fill. So they'll be reasonably settled.”

According to Ponting, the only source of disruption in India’s campaign would be when Rohit returns for the subsequent Tests. Irrespective, he believed Australia had the goods to take on and get the better of India, with their batting or bowling.

“But I just think there's potential for more disruption through their campaign with Sharma coming back and whatever else. So I'll stick with it," he said.

“(Marnus) Labuschagne and (Steve) Smith need to make runs for Australia. And their bowling attack obviously is as good as anyone's in the world. So I'll stick with my 3-1 Australia prediction.”

Test match preparation a mental battle

In the lead-up to the first Test in Perth on 22 November, while India players contested an intra-squad match simulation and net sessions, Australia allowed senior players like Pat Cummins and Steve Smith to feature in limited overs action against Pakistan before granting them rest after the second ODI.

Ponting believed that match preparation was a tricky question, where the mental side of the game needed to be looked into.

“Preparation is always a hard one to get right. Because I've seen guys like Travis Head in the past where they've almost had no preparation at all, going into a game and then turn up and play one of the all-time great innings,” Ponting added.

“You see other guys go in with great form going into a test match and don't make any runs.”

Having given Head’s example, Ponting believed that an acquired skillset always stayed and the player could make the best use of it with clarity of thought.

“So I think it's not so much the skills side of it, I don't think, going into games or series like this. It's making sure that you're nice and fresh mentally and physically," he added.

“Because with this game, your skills don't ever leave you. They don't go too far away. But as long as you're thinking clearly and thinking the right things, then you can make your body do pretty much whatever you want it to do.”