A couple of months ago I wrote a blog regarding Ricky Ponting and how it will be a great shame not being able to watch him play again. Problem solved by Surrey County Cricket Club, who today Ricky Ponting signed a 2 month contract with. Ricky will be playing for a short period of time at the Kia Oval as Smith will be off playing for South Africa in the champions trophy.
The county got really excited earlier this winter when they managed to land Smith as not only their over seas player for this summer but also their county captain. With the busy international schedule this year Smith is going to be called away from his county duties for a brief period leaving Surrey in a dilemma with no overseas player or captain. So who better to call up than one of the most successful international captains of all time and the second leading test run scorer of all time. I would say that is a pretty decent replacement.
For those of you worrying that Poniting no longer has the skill to succeed at the professional level I draw your attention to a recent double hundred scored by himself in the Australian domestic cup. Hopefully Ponting will not only bring his top class batting skills to South London but also his leadership. The reason why Surrey desperately chased Smith was because of his leadership qualities he can bring to this young team that is still maturing and already been through some rough moments last season. Hopefully Ponting can also bring his strong head to guide this team through the summer and maturation process.
The final comment I have regarding this signing is the timing. Ponting will be eligible and available to play in the twenty twenty competition and the tickets for this competition go on sale........ Tomorrow. Some well timed buzz.
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