News Sports Cricket Accolades pour in as Ponting retires

Accolades pour in as Ponting retires

Perth, Nov 29: Australia batting great Ricky Ponting Thursday decided to call time on his illustrious career post the final Test against South Africa here, the place where he made his Test debut in 1995,



"My immediate focus now and I know the team's immediate focus is what we're presented with tomorrow. We're going into what I believe is almost a grand final. I'm hungrier than ever and want this win probably more than any game I've ever played in. Ironically this is where it all started (Perth) for me and it's where it's going to finish."



The Tasmanian has an astonishing record scoring 13,366 Test runs in 167 Tests at an average of 52.21. He is the second highest run scorer behind India's Sachin Tendulkar. Ponting, who turns 38 Dec 19, also has 41 centuries with a highest of 257.

He also played 375 One-Day Internationals (ODI) scoring 13,704 runs at an average of 42.03, including 30 centuries.