I will work hard, says Ponting

Hyderabad, September 30:

Australia captain Ricky Ponting vowed to make amends for his own past failures in India during the upcoming Test series.

Ponting, one of the seven batsmen to have completed 10,000 Tests runs, has averaged a dismal 12.28 in eight matches in India since his maiden visit in 1996. “I’ll work really hard for the next week to make sure I am as good as I can be. Hopefully, I can turn things around there. It’s all in my hands and I know what I have to do to have success here.”

Ponting has managed just 172 in 14 innings in India, with his worst performance in 2001 when he scored 17 in three Tests, falling five times to off-spinner Harbhajan Singh. “There is a bit of a void in my international career here in India. There’s no doubt about that,” he said.

The opening Test begins in Bangalore on October 9, followed by back-to-back matches in Mohali, New Delhi and Nagpur. Australia won the four-Test series on their previous tour in 2004, their first success in India in 35 years.