Ponting blames WACA track for defeat

MELBOURNE: A lifeless WACA pitch was on Monday apportioned some of the blame by Australia skipper Ricky Ponting for South Africa's successful run chase in the first Test.
    
Set 414 for victory, South Africa registered the second highest successful fourth-innings run chase in Test history to win the Test by six wickets.
    
And Ponting, who said that the WACA had lost its uniqueness of pace and bounce, was purposely preparing batter-friendly pitches to stretch the game to all five days to maximise TV and gate revenues.
    
"I'm disappointed in the result and I'm disappointed because the uniqueness of the WACA that it once had, that we keep hearing about every year, it appears it's always there for the state games but it's just not there for Test matches, which I think is disappointing," Ponting was quoted as saying in The Daily Telegraph.
    
In the last four years, Australia have lost two Tests, drawn one and won another in Perth.
    
"The beauty with playing cricket in Australia is that you get a vast array of conditions all around Australia and I've just got a bit of a feeling at the moment that this place has just lost whatever it had as far as its uniqueness.
    
"This Test match here has basically been played on a wicket like Adelaide. It's not a WACA wicket whatsoever.
    
"I don't know if you guys have ever seen a wicket here on a fifth day that plays as well as that one did or if you guys have ever seen one that's been that slow and placid right from the start of the game," the Australia skipper lamented.
    
"Brisbane and Perth are the places that offer a bit of uniqueness in Australia. I think Brisbane still has that and I think the WACA is losing that very quickly." 

However, WACA chief Graeme Wood hit back at Ponting, saying that the pitch prepared by curator Cameron Sutherland was fine and the captain wouldn't have complained had Australia won the Test.
    
"I didn't see any complaints in the Ashes Test on the fifth day when Australia won and regained the Ashes (in Perth two years ago)," Wood said, just stopping short of calling Ponting a sore loser.
    
"When you are 7-162 in the second innings I don't think you can point fingers at the wicket. One side got 20 wickets, one side didn't. The last time I did look at the laws it's a five-day game.
    
"Cam (Cameron Sutherland) has expressed on a number of occasions that he was a little bit disappointed, certainly with the carry and bounce. But I think at one stage the keeper was back 25 metres. Brett Lee bounced one over the keeper's head and it went for four byes, I don't think I've seen that in Adelaide."
    
Sutherland though admitted there were aspects about the deck he wasn't pleased about, but still the WACA pitch was the best wicket in Australia.
    
"I've come out and said it didn't have as much pace as I would have liked but as far as a cricket wicket, you go anywhere else bar the WACA and they would say it's one outstanding wicket in world cricket," Sutherland said.
    
Western Australia coach Tom Moody was equally bemused about all the fuss created by Ponting.
    
"If a Test goes nearly a total of all five days and you get a result you'd have to give 10 out of 10 to the wicket, wouldn't you?" Moody said.
    
"It wasn't what we all hoped was an extremely quick WACA wicket but still it was an excellent Test wicket."