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When Ponting made headlines for the wrong reasons
No one will debate Ricky Ponting's flair as a batsman. He single-handedly won matches for Australia and was a great captain. But, all said and done, there were times when the former skipper, who announced his retirement from Tests on Thursday, made headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Sample some instances:
The one that tops the list, perhaps, was in the ICC Champions Trophy final in 2006.
The World champions nudged and pushed Board of Control for Cricket in India president Sharad Pawar during the presentation ceremony.
- Ponting plays second fiddle to Tendulkar
Australia captain Ponting first pointed his finger at Pawar, directing him to handover the winner's trophy, and then Damien Martyn nudged the Indian minsiter down the dais.
Pawar, who was also then Union Agriculture Minister, however, played down the incident.
"It was a small thing, a stupid thing. I don't want to react," he said.
Many former and present cricketers, including Sachin Tendulkar, came down heavily on the Australian team for their rude behaviour.
When Ponting made headlines for the wrong reasons
In 2010, Ponting lost his temper after a referral for a catch off Kevin Pietersen's bat was turned down by the TV umpire.
He lost his temper and had a long and heated finger-waving argument with umpire Aleem Dar in the fourth Ashes Test against England.
Later, he apologised for "overstepping the mark".
The 36-year-old was fined 40 per cent of his match fee by the International Cricket Council.
'Yesterday was me overstepping the mark and obviously I apologise for the way that looked, it's certainly not the way I want to be looked upon as a captain,' Ponting told Australia's Channel Nine later.
When Ponting made headlines for the wrong reasons
In 2009 Ponting smashed a door at Edgbaston after being dismissed by Graeme Swann.
When Ponting made headlines for the wrong reasons
In February 2011, during the World Cup, Ponting smashed a television set in Ahmedabad after being run-out in the game against Zimbabwe.
He apologised for smashing an LCD screen in the team's dressing room following the run-out, but his behaviour came under severe criticism from former cricketers.
When Ponting made headlines for the wrong reasons
A few days later, against Canada, Ponting and teammate Steve Smith collided after the former called to take a catch.
The accident caused a massive fall-out between the teammates.