Ricky Ponting Used To Get Out Just By Looking At My Face: Harbhajan Singh

Ricky Ponting, former Australian captain, and three-time World Cup-winner is one of the greatest batsmen to have graced this beautiful game. The stylish right-handed batsman called time on his career back in 2012 after dominating gazillions of bowlers all around the world during his decorated seventeen-year-old career.

Ponting finished his career as the second-highest run-getter in Test cricket and with the second-most number of hundreds (71) across formats but if there was one bowler, who constantly had the upper hand on the Tasmanian, it was legendary Indian spinner, Harbhajan Singh.

Commenting on his complete control over Ponting during his career, Harbhajan, in a recent Instagram Live session with Rohit Sharma, said the former Australian and Mumbai Indians skipper used to get out just by facing him in the nets.

Harbhajan was alluding to the 2013 season of the Indian Premier League where he played alongside each other for the Mumbai Indians.

“I think Ricky Ponting used to get out just by looking at my face. I didn’t even need to bowl at him. When he came to play for Mumbai Indians, I thought he would improve after playing me in the nets. But even there I got him out 5-6 times,” Harbhajan Singh told Rohit.

Ponting did not get many runs in the 2013 season and retired midway to hand over the leadership reigns to Rohit Sharma. The Mumbai Indians captain went on to take a sly at Ponting when he said-

“I think you dented his confidence even before the series started bhajju paa. Now I know why he couldn’t score runs that season” Rohit told Bhajji.

Read: Ricky Ponting Recalls Best Over He Faced In International Cricket

Harbhajan Singh had a constant lid over Ricky Ponting during their playing days

Coming back to the stranglehold, Harbhajan had over Ricky Ponting, the turbanator accounted for the Australian No.3 on 10 occasions in 14 innings, three of which resulted in Ponting getting dismissed for a duck.

Ponting has time and again revealed how Harbhajan Singh used to get the better of him, especially in Indian conditions.

“My arch-nemesis when I was playing against India was Harbhajan Singh. I still get nightmares about him,” Ponting had said back in 2016.

Ricky Ponting had an abysmal record in India and one of the major reasons for it was Harbhajan Singhs. In 14 Tests, spanning across six India tours, Ricky Ponting managed just 662 runs at an average of 26.48 which included just a solitary hundred.

Read: Harbhajan Singh Explains Difference Between Chennai Super Kings And Mumbai Indians