Ricky Ponting goes down memory lane, uploads picture of a signed jersey from his debut as Australia's Test captain

Amidst all that is going in the world due to the coronavirus, the whole world seems to be talking about the virus only. People are staying home and spending quarantine time with their families. Former Australian captain took this time to take all his fans down the memory lane.

On Saturday, Ricky Ponting posted a picture of the jersey which he wore in his first Test as the Australian captain. His teammates had signed on the jersey and written messages to make his moment a really special for him. Ponting took a walk down the memory lane and shared a picture of the same on his Twitter account.

Ponting shared the picture with a caption, “When I captained my first Test the boys signed this shirt and left messages. I remember this Test most for the brilliant batting from @damienmartyn and @darren_lehmann in what were very tough conditions.

This win started a new chapter in the Australian history as Ponting went on led the side another 76 times in Test cricket, winning 47 of those Tests. Ricky Ponting ended his career as one of the finest batsmen to have played the game.

However, no one can discount the fact that he was one of the best leaders in the history of cricket. Other than winning several Tests as a captain, Ponting is also the most successful captain in the history of ODIs. He has led Australia twice to a World Cup victory– in 2003 and 2007.

When I captained my first Test the boys signed this shirt and left messages. I remember this Test most for the brilliant batting from @damienmartyn and @darren_lehmann in what were very tough conditions. pic.twitter.com/LpUzgxIXzp

— Ricky Ponting AO (@RickyPonting) March 28, 2020

Ricky Ponting was handed over the captaincy after Steve Waugh

Ricky Ponting was handed over the reins of the Test side only in 2004 after Steve Waugh hung his boots. By then, he was already a World Cup-winning captain and ready to make his mark in red-ball cricket as well. In the first Test against Sri Lanka at Galle, Australia batted first but couldn’t get a great score on board. The Aussies managed only 220 as Muttiah Muralitharan picked up a six-fer. The hosts batted well and got to 381 on the back on Tillakaratne Dilshan’s century.

With a deficit of 161 runs, Ponting’s side was staring down a huge defeat. But centuries from Matthew Hayden, Damien Martyn and Darren Lehmann took the Aussies to a huge second innings total. They scored 512/8 (decl) even though Muralitharan picked up another five-wicket haul.

Sri Lanka were set a target of 352 runs to win, which was clearly a lot on turning track such as this one in Galle. Shane Warne picked his second five-fer in the match along with Stuart MacGill who picked up four wickets. The spin bowling duo rattled the Lankans as they were bowled out for a meagre total of 154 runs.