Ben needs some stoking up, feels pundit Ponting

Melbourne, Dec. 27: Former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting feels Ben Stokes hasn’t looked like the “physically aggressive” presence that opposition teams have feared due to his “ultradefensive approach” in the ongoing Ashes series.

Ponting also slammed England skipper Joe Root, Stokes and Jos Buttler for the manner of their dismissals in the first innings of the Boxing Day Test which the two-time World Cup winning captain believes was “inexcusable”.

“He’s looked ultradefensive. He hasn’t looked like the big, physically aggressive presence at the crease that opposition teams have feared to bowl to in other series,” Ponting told cricket.com.au.

Ponting reckons Stokes must deviate from the conservative approach to help the struggling tourists. “But I think if you just sit back and wait, and don’t put pressure on great bowlers, they’re going to get you out. We always used to say in teams that I played in that the better the bowler, the more risks you had to take as a batter, because you simply don’t get bad balls. You have got to find a way to jump on anything that’s a little bit bad, rotate the strike as much as you can,” he said.

Ponting was sharp in his criticism of Stokes, Root and Buttler, adding that the senior players need to rise to the occasion. “(It was) inexcusable for three of your more senior players, the players that they needed to stand up on the back of what we believe were some pretty stern discussions after the Adelaide game. If your leaders aren’t going to do it, then you can’t expect the younger guys to get the job done,” Ponting said.

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