Commonwealth Bank Series 2011-12

Ponting dropped from ODI squad

Ricky Ponting has been dropped from Australia's ODI squad 

Ricky Ponting, the former Australia captain, has been dropped from the ODI squad for the remainder of the triangular series following the worst batting slump of his limited-overs career.

Scores of 2, 1, 6, 2 and 7 have drawn the curtain on Ponting's time as an ODI batsman, despite the fact that he served as stand-in captain for the injured Michael Clarke in the last two of those matches. In a 375-game one-day international career, never before had Ponting made five single-figure scores in a row. John Inverarity, the national selector, said Ponting would be missed, but the time had come to move on in the 50-over format.

"The team will not seem the same without him, but moving on from the omission of players who have been outstanding over a long period of time is the nature of elite sport," Inverarity said. "Ricky's record speaks for itself. He is one of the truly great performers in the history of Australian ODI cricket, with his reputation enhanced further by him captaining Australia to two World Cup victories.

"Ricky's contribution goes far beyond his batting statistics and his brilliant fielding. The example he sets in every respect and his extraordinarily positive influence in the dressing-room is acknowledged by all. He is held in the highest possible regard by his team-mates and there is no higher accolade than this. Ricky being prepared to take over the captaincy in Michael Clarke's recent absence for the sake of the team is yet another example of his selfless attitude and team-first focus."

Australia ODI squad Michael Clarke (capt), Shane Watson (vc), Dan Christian, Xavier Doherty, Peter Forrest, Ryan Harris, Ben Hilfenhaus, David Hussey, Michael Hussey, Brett Lee, Clint McKay, Matthew Wade, David Warner

Like Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh before him, Ponting was not given the chance to choose when he would end his ODI career. As late as Sunday night in Brisbane following Australia's win in Brisbane, Ponting said he had no intention of stepping aside, and had left his future in the hands of the selectors. Inverarity countered suggestions that Ponting might have been given a farewell match with the stark realities of professional sport.

"Ricky Ponting has been dropped from the ODI side and the national selection panel has spoken about moving towards the 2015 World Cup," he said. "The door is never closed on anybody, but it's a strong indication there. We were very keen for Ricky to play in these games because we intended to blend in some younger players, and his influence for them has been remarkable. But we need to at some stage move on.

"We're not ruling him out because one never knows what's around the corner … but we've certainly got 2015 in mind, and we knew at the beginning of the series when we wanted those young players to be blended in, in the presence of Ricky.

"In elite sport there's no place for sentiment. There are always the two schools of thought, going out on your own terms and that, and the members of the national selection panel were unanimous in their view. It was discussed by email last night, a few calls last night and was confirmed this morning. That's the decision and that's elite sport."

Ponting has been replaced in the squad by the allrounder and vice-captain Shane Watson, who proved his fitness after a stubborn calf injury by playing for New South Wales in a Sheffield Shield match against Western Australia in Perth. Inverarity announced one other change to the squad, recalling Ryan Harris in place of Mitchell Starc. He also confirmed that Matthew Wade had now usurped Brad Haddin as the No. 1 wicketkeeper in limited-overs matches, and that the panel intened to take both glovemen to the West Indies.

"Ryan Harris has been re-included in the squad with Mitchell Starc making way for his return. Mitchell will benefit greatly from the Tests and the ODIs he has played," Inverarity said. "His development as a player of the future is most encouraging. Shane Watson also comes back into the squad. He is an all-rounder of proven class and the NSP is keen to have him re-join the squad.

"The NSP made the decision that Matthew Wade is now the preferred ODI wicket-keeper for the Australian ODI team. The intention at this stage is to have both Matthew and Brad Haddin in the West Indies together for the duration of the tour."

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Nadal stops Federer in thriller

Roger Federer, left, congratulates Rafael Nadal after their semifinal match.

In tennis, the times they may be a-changin’ but some things remain resolutely the same: Roger Federer cannot get the better of Rafael Nadal at the Grand Slam events. He struggles to beat the raging bull at most of the other tournaments, too, but when it comes to the majors, Nadal reigns supreme.

Federer has not beaten the Spaniard at a Grand Slam tournament since Wimbledon 2007. Indeed, his only two wins against Nadal at a major have both come on the grass of SW19 – and Nadal redressed that balance by winning their next Wimbledon showdown in 2008. In 10 meetings at the big events, Nadal has won eight times; in 27 meetings overall, the Swiss has won just nine times.

As Federer’s final forehand sailed over the baseline on Thursday – the 36th forehand fluff from the once mighty Swiss – Nadal celebrated as if he had won the trophy. He had stood firm in the face of everything his old rival had to throw at him and he had emerged the 6-7(5), 6-2, 7-6(5), 6-4 winner. It had taken three hours and 42 minutes of eye-watering effort, but Nadal was through to the final. Again. Federer, meanwhile, retired to lick his wounds.

For almost two weeks, Federer had looked stylish, confident and dominant (he had not dropped a set on his way to the semifinal) and for the first five games against Nadal, he had looked unbeatable. But it did not matter. Not against Nadal.

Nadal had seemed dejected and lost as Novak Djokovic beat him in six finals last year and wrenched the No.1 ranking from his grasp. He did not know how to deal with the new-look Serb, the Djokovic who swept all before him. But put Federer in front of the man from Manacor and suddenly everything changes, suddenly everything becomes clear.

Nadal and Federer have been chasing each other around the globe for the past nine years – there are no secrets between them and neither man can surprise the other. Roger knows exactly what Rafa is going to do against him and, more importantly, Rafa knows that it is going to work.

“We have had good matches over the years,” Federer said. “I enjoy playing him. The crowd really gets into it, which is nice. We have a lot of respect for each other, which is good, too, I think.


“You know, works as well at the highest of levels. We also play well against each other. I always think he plays a bit better against me than against other players, but that's good for him.”

The problem for Federer – and for most everyone else, too – is that Nadal is like a bulldozer. The sheer force and power, both mental and physical, of the world No.2 is enough to crush almost everything in his path. Other men – even men as brilliant as Federer – cannot maintain such relentless pressure over the course of four or five sets but Nadal appears to get stronger with every game that passes.

Once upon a time, Federer was the best front-runner in the business, but then Nadal pushed his way to the fore. Now, aged 30, he can still play brilliantly but he can only do it in spells. There are times when the frustration mounts or the pressure becomes too much – and then Nadal goes for the kill.

Even so, for much of those four sets, the two old war horses put on a display that took the breath away. The power, the placement and the sheer audacity of some of the winners was remarkable; the fact that they were able to conjure up such magic game after game was beyond belief. No matter how many times you see them play, Nadal and Federer still make the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end.

For Nadal, beating Federer had been a major stepping stone. After the disappointments of last season’s finals against Djokovic and the injuries he had collected by the end of the year, the very fact he has reached another final means that he is ready to compete with the best again. He is fit, he is playing with passion and aggression – and that bodes well for the rest of the season.

“I am very happy about my result on these two weeks,” he said. “I did much better than what I thought, what I dreamed for three weeks ago. So very happy for everything. It's a fantastic victory for me. Very, very happy playing against the greatest of the history in semifinals, big match on Rod Laver. It's one of the victories that's going to stay in my mind forever, no?

“But if the opponents [in the final] play better than me and he beat me, I going to go home very happy about my tournament. I going to go home knowing that the way that I am working is working very well, and keep working on this way. Probably this way give me a good success in the next months.”

That just leaves one question unanswered: if, as Nadal says, Federer is indeed “the greatest of the history” then what does that make Nadal, his conqueror in 18 of 27 matches? Answers, please, on a postcard.
 
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