Ricky Ponting seeking answers after captain snubs best bowler in IPL loss

Ricky Ponting wants answers from captain Rishabh Pant after the Indian star benched Delhi’s best bowler when the game was on the line.

Ricky Ponting wasn't sure why Ravichandran Ashwin was kept on ice.

Ricky Ponting has questioned why his IPL team — led by new captain Rishabh Pant — snubbed its best bowler when the game was on the line as it slumped to a three-wicket loss on Friday morning (AEDT).

Delhi Capitals, coached by former Australian captain Ponting, posted 8/147 before Rajasthan Royals chased down the total with two balls remaining.

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Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was the most economical of Delhi’s bowlers, conceding just 14 runs from three overs. Under normal circumstances a tweaker that miserly would be given a fourth and final over but the offie was left stranded and didn’t complete his full allotment of deliveries.

Ashwin sent down the seventh, ninth and 11th overs of Rajasthan’s innings but was taken off and never returned. Pant, who took over the captaincy after Shreyas Iyer was ruled out of the tournament with a dislocated shoulder, instead gave the ball to Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis, who conceded 15 runs from the 13th over of the innings.

Ponting was baffled by the decision to leave Ashwin hanging and said he would be addressing the tactical misfire with his troops.

“That’s certainly something that we will talk about when I get a chance to sit down with the team,” Ponting said in his post-match press conference.

“He had bowled beautifully. Three overs, none for 14. Hadn’t even conceded a boundary.

“Look he had a disappointing game in game one (1/47 vs Chennai Super Kings), but he has worked really hard in the last few days to make sure he adjusted and got things right in this game. I thought he bowled beautifully tonight.

“Probably a mistake on our behalf, and something we will be talking about later on.”

Ashwin could have been used better.

Ponting also lamented the length his team bowled to Royals star Chris Morris, who belted four sixes in a matchwinning 36 not out from just 18 balls.

Morris proved his worth after becoming the most expensive purchase in IPL history when he was picked up for $2.9 million, icing the game after fellow South African David Miller came to the rescue with 62 from 43 after Rajasthan had collapsed to 5/42.

It comes after Morris was denied the chance to win the game against Punjab earlier this week, being rejected by his captain at the death.

“We probably gave him (Morris) a few too many easy balls, a few too many slot balls if you like,” Ponting said. “The length wasn’t quite where it needed to be.

“If you look at the replay of the game, if you bowled a reasonable yorker, he didn’t score off them. If it was back of a length, sort of, above stump high, he didn’t get hold of them either, especially with pace on the ball.

“We talked about how to bowl to him, but the execution probably wasn’t there.”