'Ponting victim of own high standards'

Port of Spain: Australia captain Michael Clarke feels that his predecessor Ricky Ponting was a victim of the high standards he himself set. The 37-year-old Ponting, who retired from ODIs earlier this year, is under scrutiny in every Test he plays despite scoring at an average of 108.80 against Indian during the summer at home.

But failure to score a half-century in the last four innings against the West Indies has again put the spotlight on Ponting. "The thing with Ricky is he's set his standards so high. He's been an amazing player for such a long period of time. People expect him to make 50 or 100 every time he walks out to bat and that's not the game," Clarke was quoted as saying by the Australian media.

Clarke says despite Ponting nearing his retirement, the former Australia captain advancing years, he remains a vital part of the quest to get Australia back up to No.1 in the world Test rankings. "I still think he's playing some really good cricket. I still see him as a big part of this team and I think he's had a lot of impact on this tour as well.

Failure to score a fifty in the last four innings against the West Indies has put the spotlight on Ponting.

"He got run out in the first Test in the first innings. He got a ball, when we were trying to push the game forward in the second innings in Barbados, that shot along the ground. I don't need to make excuses for Ricky, I've seen him bat for a long time. He's hitting the ball sweet ... hopefully he goes on a makes a big score in the third Test," Clarke said.

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