Word on the streets is that Ricky Ponting and Rohit Sharma shared quite the equation when the captaincy was handed.
Between 2008 and 2012, Mumbai Indians had zero IPL titles for their effort. But from 2013 to 2020, MI won the trophy more than any other team – five trophies in seven years, one every alternate year. Such was the powerhouse Mumbai Indians became, all thanks to one Rohit Sharma. Since taking over as captain from Ricky Ponting in the middle of the IPL 2013 season, neither Rohit nor the franchise has looked back.
Ricky Ponting (L) with Rohit Sharma during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy(AFP)
Over the next 10 years, MI became the team everyone wanted to beat. Despite their stuttering start – MI have not won their opening game of the IPL in the last 13 seasons – the team has produced some star performers who became not only greats but also the face of the franchise. Who can forget the rise of Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya? Or the emergence of Suryakumar Yadav? That’s the kind of scouting system MI has in place.
One of the reasons behind MI’s unparalleled success is the ease within players. Take out the last season of the IPL, where the whole Rohit vs Hardik thing blew out of proportion and led to chaos that could well have been easily avoided. MI could have done this by taking a leaf out of 2013 when the seamless transition from Ponting to Rohit led the team to its maiden IPL title. Rohit took over as Ponting, and Sachin Tendulkar took the backseat. In fact, Ponting played just six matches that year and retired from the IPL, having played just 10 matches over 2 seasons.
Currently the head coach of Punjab Kings after serving the Delhi Capitals in the same capacity since 2018, Ponting’s coaching tenure started with the Mumbai Indians. But more than that, it’s Ponting’s simplicity that stands out and allows his leaders to flourish. In a fascinating tale narrated by Harsha Bhogle, the renowned commentator and broadcaster revealed how Ponting once served drinks to Rohit, catching the former MI captain completely off guard.
Ponting’s simplicity
“Old Mumbai Indians people talk about when he was made captain in 2013. If you remember, half-way through, he gave the captaincy to Rohit Sharma and then they went on to win. Apparently, in the next game, and this story has come to me – I don’t know how true it is – he was going round the boundary wearing the bib with the Gatorades and the drinks,” Bhogle said while speaking on Cricbuzz.
“And there’s this young Indian player [Rohit] on the boundary, and he reacted saying ‘No no, you can’t do this to me’. Ponting replied, ‘Dude, if I’m playing, you would be going round the boundary doing it, right? So there’s no difference. I’m not playing so I’m helping you do better'”.
But Ricky Ponting is tough… very tough
Bhogle added that while Ponting is very giving, one should not mistake this trait of him as being soft, because when push comes to shove, Punter can be as tough as a coach can get.
“There’s a lot about Australia society that we talk about but there’s also egalitarianism. I’m not playing… I’ll help you. And that is what endeared him to people there. But he can be very, very tough. He can speak his mind straight. He’ll come to you and tell you exactly what you’re thinking,” he said.
