By IANS
Brisbane : A dejected Australian captain, Ricky Ponting acknowledged that his team’s level of cricket has dropped in the last three games of the Commonwealth Bank series.
Ponting said this after his team’s nine-run defeat in the second of the best-of-three finals and grudgingly accepted that the Indians had outplayed his team.
“We played well in the series, but yes the level of our cricket has dropped in the last three games. But you cannot take the credit away from India. They outplayed us in every department,” Ponting said.
“They (India) really dominated us in the last two games. Praveen Kumar did a terrific job for India in the absence of Ishant Sharma,” Ponting said.
The Australian team has been under pressure ever since losing to Sri Lanka in the last of the league matches, with coach Tim Nielsen openly conceding a day before the second final that the consecutive defeats had shaken the confidence of the World Champions.
Ponting, however, refused to offer any excuses for his side’s sloppy performance, and complimented Indian team for the their comprehensive win.
“It is disappointing to lose the finals. But, the credit goes to Dhoni and his team for the way they played. They deserved the trophy. We are offering no excuses,” he said.
The series has been marred with the off-field controversies with India, bringing the conduct of some of the Australian players under scanner. But, Ponting denied that it had any affect on his team.
“I don’t think the off-field controversies had any affect on us. In fact, they have got down in the last week. Overall good cricket has been played in this series,” he said.