Ponting's shoes massive to fill: Hilditch by CricketArchive Staff Reporter

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Player:	RT Ponting
Event:	Australia in India 2009/10

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DateLine: 11th November 2009

 

Australian chief selector Andrew Hilditch has said that Ricky Ponting's retirement will have a "dramatic" impact on Australian cricket.

 

The NSP Chairman said it will be extremely difficult for anyone to fit into the shoes of Ponting considering his "exceptional" leadership qualities.

 

"When we lose Ricky Ponting it will be as dramatic an impact as Shane Warne. Ricky's shoes are massive shoes to fill. He has been a really strong man, really positive around the group," Hilditch said.

 

"You can talk tactics all you want but in the end the captain is the person who has got to mould the side and make it a winning team. Ricky has done that exceptionally well," he was quoted as saying by the 'Courier Mail'.

 

Hilditch said Michael Clarke's elevation as the skipper of the national Twenty20 team will help them assess his leadership skills.

 

"The lucky thing is that Michael has got an opportunity in Twenty20 cricket to run a tournament. We have now got a six-month build-up for the next Twenty20 World Cup and he knows he is captain. It is a big moment for him.

 

"It is really good that he gets that opportunity so we get a good chance to assess whether he is the next person to do it in all forms of the game," Hilditch said.