Selectors will decide Ponting’s Future

After Australia’s quarter-final exit from the World Cup, Ricky Ponting has said he wants to continue playing but that his fate is in the hands of the selectors.

Ponting, 36, scored a measured century in the game against India in Ahmedabad but it was not enough to lead the three-time defending champions to victory, thereby relinquishing the trophy they have held since 1999.

Ponting’s leadership has also been criticised since Australia lost the Ashes to England at home in January – making him the first Australian captain to concede the urn three times in over a century – and there have been reports that the selectors are contemplating replacing him at the helm. Ponting, however, said he is focused on getting Australia back to the top as quickly as possible.

The loss to India marked Australia’s earliest exit from a World Cup since 1992, and while Ponting admitted to being “shattered”, he thinks a knee-jerk reaction to the poor results of the last few months will do more harm than good.