Ponting admits missing his playing days on witnessing Smith-Archer verbal exchange during Brisbane Test

Adelaide [Australia], December 11 (ANI): Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting admitted that witnessing the heated exchange between stand-in skipper Steve Smith and England pace spearhead Jofra Archer made him miss his own playing days and added that the pacer "embarrassed himself" by bowling his "fastest spell" when the match was completely gone for England.

The third Ashes Test will take place at Adelaide Oval from December 17 onwards. England is heading into the third Test, a do-or-die match, with two massive scars on them psychologically, with one being a Travis Head storm at Perth during the first Test at Perth which helped Aussies chase down 205 runs and end the Test in just two days. The other one was a lot more of their own making as dropped catches and a largely poor display with the bat in the second innings meant Aussies were set only 69 runs to chase, which they did easily.

A very embarrassing incident took place during the defence of these paltry 69 runs when Jofra Archer tried to exchange few words with Steve Smith as the Aussies were heading towards an easy win. Smith, noting how the English quick was giving his all in the spell despite the fact that the game was already gone, he hit back at Archer saying, "Bowl fast when there's nothing going on champion."

Even Ponting, sitting in the commentary box, could not help himself but say, "Too late for that, champ".

Speaking as quoted by SEN, Ponting said, "When I 'championed' him, I could actually hear what Steve Smith had said to him in the stump mic. Smithy said champion, and then that is just what came out of my mouth, but it just got me going and got the hairs on the back of my neck standing up."

"There have not been many games that I've commentated that I wish I was back playing again. But I wish I was out there the other night as part of that, because that is what you miss and that is what it is all about," he added.

Ponting was critical of Archer bowling his heart out when the game was gone, saying that he had "embarrassed himself and his team" and when he was actually needed to be at his lethal best on day three of the Test match, he was "rocking up with his pillow under his arm". During the first innings, he bowled 25 overs and could fetch only one wicket while giving away 87 runs.

"But look, for Jofra, he just embarrassed himself, and he embarrassed his team the other night, that's what I make of that. To bowl his fastest spell ever in Test cricket, when Australia's chasing 60... it (the fast spell) has been there the whole time, it has been up his sleeve, and England have needed him to do it, and he has not been willing to do it."

"Day 3, when they needed him to do it, he rocks up with his pillow under his arm, and that was always going to be a bad day for England from that moment. As soon as anyone saw that it was going to be 'Okay, there is their mindset for the day. They are just going to rock up and Australia's going to fall over and we'll bowl them out'. Well, that does not happen against Australia, it does not happen in Ashes cricket," he said.

The multi-time World Cup-winning legend feels that the England quick has to do it during the "first morning in Adelaide" now that his team knows he can bowl that fast.

"But now that England know that he can do it, then how can he not rock out and do that first morning in Adelaide? He has to do that now, that is if in fact they have not had enough," Ponting said.

"Maybe what they saw the other day was just the straw that broke the camel's back, and it is, 'If he is not willing to do it for the team, then we will find someone else that will', who knows? They have got lots of questions that need to be answered, but for Stokes, he must sit back and think, 'Oh my god, where has that been? Why have not you been able to do that for me for the last four days that we have been in the field?'. So, yep, there is a bit of soul searching, and I am sure some pretty stern conversations have probably already been had around that dressing room," he concluded.

So far in the ongoing Ashes, Archer has taken just three wickets in two matches at an average of 57.00, a strike rate of 94.00 and an economy rate of 3.63, with best figures of 2/11. (ANI)

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