Ashes 2023: Ricky Ponting warns of England’s quick fix

Former Australian captain says the visitors are facing their Jofra Archer moment and how they handle it will determine their Ashes fate.

Australia captain Pat Cummins speaks with Mark Wood after the England paceman’s man of the match performance at Headingley Picture: Getty Images

The Australian side has reassembled in Manchester ahead of Wednesday’s fourth Test, where it faces an English team riding high on adrenalin following Mark Wood’s sensational fast bowling at Headingley, with Ricky Ponting nominating the quick as the biggest danger.

Just as Jofra Archer’s introduction in the corresponding match changed the 2019 series, Wood’s fiery performance set Australia on the back foot and brought England back into the contest.

Speaking to the ICC this week, Ricky Ponting compared the England quick to Mitchell Johnson.

“(Wood) is a bit like him (Johnson) and a bit like Brett Lee in his prime, I reckon, as well,” Ponting said.

“Bowling first change, bowling quickly, intimidating batsmen, getting a little bit of movement when it was there. He is just an absolute strike weapon.”

Ponting believes Wood made the difference in the third Test.

“I think that the difference was there to see in Headingley,” Ponting said of Wood’s impact.

“I mean someone that can run in and bowl at that pace, but he gets movement with the ball as well. His seam presentation, the way he releases the ball, is outstanding for someone that’s running in and bowling as fast as he is.

“You look at the delivery that got (Usman) Khawaja, full just swinging back down the line at mid-90 miles an hour.

“If you‘ve got someone like that you just have to play it, when they’re physically fit and going, you’ve just got to keep playing them until they eventually run out of steam. The impact he had on the game was absolutely first class and him and (Chris) Woakes I thought were the difference.”

Meanwhile,  Australia may have won some relief in its plea not to be docked almost its entire points allocation from the Lord’s match as the ICC and players have had their fines reduced following an ICC meeting in South Africa.

The Australian revealed last week that Pat Cummins’ side is set to be stripped of up to 13 of its points from the World Test Championship table which decides who plays off in the 2025 WTC final.

A side is awarded 12 points for a win, but Australia, already hit with two penalty points for slow over rates in the Edgbaston match, was hit with an 11 point penalty for being the equivalent number of overs behind during the second Test at Lord’s.

Australia slipped disastrously behind the required over rates in the heated match when Nathan Lyon broke down, and looks to be penalised almost all its points for the win in that match as well as a portion of the match fees of the playing XI.

There had been hopes that with England also pleading its case, the organisation may look kindly on the participants of an extraordinarily entertaining contest, and the ICC has agreed to retrospectively change the rules so that sides aren’t penalised if they bowl out the opposition in less than 80 (previously 60) overs.

Australia bowled England out in 76.2 overs in England’s first innings and 81.3 in the second – a figure that will be readjusted because of uncontrollable time delays.

As it stands, Pat Cummins’ side has all its points allocation for the Ashes. ICC chair Greg Barclay of New Zealand was unsympathetic on the issue following the annual general meeting in South Africa.

“The men’s cricket committee looked at the fines and the suggestions and then certainly balanced the level of fines that are being applied,” he said after the meeting.

“They were very strong at the points deductions for over-rate penalties in the World Test Championship (WTC) to remain in place. Teams that do not heed the minimum pace of play jeopardise their opportunity to qualify for the WTC final. The men’s cricket committee is looking at potential in-game penalties come the next cycle of the WTC.

“We are still looking at ways in which we can make a difference within Test cricket because it is a concern.

“We haven’t had the right combination yet in terms of the fines, points, penalties that can have an impact.

“I know Australia missed the first edition of the WTC final because of over-rate penalty points, but we are looking at other measures. We have been able to introduce measures in T20 and ODI cricket with regards to having an extra fielder inside the circle in the last few overs if over rates are slow, but (we are) looking for an in-game penalty for Test cricket as well.”