Ricky Ponting recalls how Brian Lara made his mind games look ordinary during Test match

Former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting revealed how the plan to sledge his West Indies counterpart Brian Lara had backfired and how the latter went on to play an impactful knock. Ponting was sharing the commentary box with Lara during the ongoing edition of the Big Bash League (BBL) when he recalled the incident.

'Thanks for the inspiration'

The incident took place during the third Test match between Australia and West Indies at the Adelaide Oval in December 2000. Batting first, the 'Calypso Boys' were reduced to 86/3 after which Brian Charles Lara and middle-order batsman Jimmy Adams added 183 runs for the fourth-wicket stand and when 'Punter' tried to get under his opposite number's skin, he ended up paying a huge price for it as Lara top-scored with 182.

“We were playing a Test match in Adelaide, and he literally wasn’t playing a shot. He’d been going on for like 30-40 balls. And I said to him, ‘you’re setting the place alight today, Brian. You’re absolutely creaming them mate. You’re putting everyone to sleep,’” said Ponting while commentating on 7Cricket.

“An hour and a half later, he was on 180 not out. And at the end of the game, he signed his shirt and wrote, ‘thanks for the inspiration. Best wishes, Brian Lara’,” the three-time World Cup winner added.

Ricky Ponting's successful cricketing career

Ponting has represented Australia in 168 Tests and 375 One Day Internationals between 1995 to 2012. Apart from being an integral part of Australia's three consecutive World Cup triumphs between 1999 to 2007 (leading the Aussies to back-to-back World Cup wins in the 2003 & 2007 editions respectively), he was also a part of the Mark Taylor-led side that had finished as the runners-up in the 1996 edition. 'Punter' also led Australia to two straight ICC Champions Trophy triumphs in 2006 and 2009 respectively. 

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Brian Lara's cricketing career

Brian Charles Lara was one of the best and the finest cricketers to play and lead the West Indies team. Under his captaincy, WI's title drought of 25 years came to an end when they won their first and only ICC Champions Trophy in 2004. Lara finished his cricketing career as one of the best in the business with some phenomenal records to his name.

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Nicknamed 'The Prince of Trinidad', Lara represented West Indies for 17 years. He became the youngest captain for the team of Trinidad and Tobago at just the age of 20. He made his Test debut for the West Indies side the same year against Pakistan in Lahore, where he registered scores of 44 and 6. Right after the Test, he had to return to the domestic circuit and only became a regular once Richards retired. 

In his three captaincy stints, the team didn't really shine, but the greatest feat for him as a captain was when he led his side to win the ICC Champions Trophy in 2004. He hung his gloriously-worn boots after the '07 World Cup. Lara's score of 400 against England in 2004 remains the highest individual Test score to date.

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