Ponting ko kyon guzza aata hai?

By John Cheeran
Aussies own World Cup and Champions Trophy, but they own neither cricket nor world.
Australian captain Ricky Ponting and his colleagues behaved as if they own the world after winning the Champions Trophy final against West Indies in Mumbai.
Ponting and Damien Martyn pushed around Sharad Pawar who is the President of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Union Minister for Agriculture in India, during the presentation ceremony. Pawar is one of the political heavyweights in India.
Pawar was apparently ushered off the stage by the Australians at the end of a long trophy presentation. Ponting apparently pointed for Pawar to leave, while Martyn guided him away with his hand.
Ponting's attitude is reprehensible.
The fact that Ponting has not bothered to apologise (nor Cricket Australia) for his and his colleague's rude gesture makes the issue all the more grave. It is quite another matter that Pawar himself dismissed Ponting's silly gesture unworthy of reaction.
Ponting has been seething with anger for the last few days. He apparently was upset at the ICC Award night in Mumbai for Rahul Dravid being chosen as the skipper of the World Test side. During the ICC executive meeting in Mumbai there were lots of decisions that gone against Aussie-England axis.
Darrell Hair was stripped of his elite status; Malcolm Speed was put in his place; MPA was amended in India's favour etc. All this could have contributed to building up the resentment towards the Indian board.
It is generally considered that the good will be arrogant too. At least Ponting and company have reasons to be arrogant. They, after all, are good at playing cricket.
And just think of Indian cricketers. Their arrogance knows no boundaries. But they have no reasons to be arrogant; they are winning neither Tests nor one-dayers.
If only India could beat Australia on the cricket pitch!
Had they done so, Pawar, the BCCI President, would have been spared the indignity during the presentation ceremony.
But then again, for that, cricket administrators in the country should take the blame.
Aussies can be arrogant.
Cricket Australia have built an excellent system which throws up non-nonsense players who stops short of nothing to ensure victory.
India rely on an Aussie coach; so are West Indies simply because they are the best in the business. Aussies teach us; Aussies beat us.
What do we have except a fistful of rupees?