Australian cricket legend Ricky Ponting has made a bold prediction ahead of the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Test series, set to take place between India and Australia from November to December. Ponting believes that the Pat Cummins-led Australian side will emerge victorious with a 3-1 win in the five-match series, aiming to prove a point after consecutive Test series defeats at home to India.
India, having secured back-to-back 2-1 series wins on Australian soil, will face off against the world's No. 1 Test team, Australia, beginning on November 22. Ponting emphasised the significance of the upcoming series, stating, "It's going to be a competitive series. Australia has got a bit of a point to prove against India in Australia on the back of what happened in the last two series here," during an interview on 'The ICC Review'.
He also highlighted the importance of the series returning to a five-test format after the last few editions were limited to four Tests. "We are back to five Tests as well, which is the other really important thing about this series. It has only been four Tests the last couple of times. (To have) five Tests, everyone is really excited by that, and I don't know if there'd be too many drawn games," Ponting added.
Ponting, staying loyal to his roots, predicted an Australian win: "I'm obviously going to tip Australia to win, and I'm never going to tip against Australia. There will be a draw somewhere, and there will be some bad weather somewhere, so I'm going to say 3-1 to Australia."
The former Australian captain also endorsed Indian left-arm seamer Khaleel Ahmed, who played under Ponting's coaching at Delhi Capitals in the IPL, for inclusion in India's squad for the tour. "Someone like Khaleel Ahmed, I think, could find himself on the Test tour. He has just been over in Zimbabwe recently and played that (T20I) series over there, but a left-armer would be ideal for them to have in their touring squad," Ponting suggested.
He also mentioned India's fast-bowling arsenal, including the likes of Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Jasprit Bumrah, noting that both teams are likely to field strong line-ups for the series.
Ponting further remarked on the intense rivalry between India and Australia, comparing it to the historic Ashes rivalry with England. "The competitiveness between India and Australia is quite close to the Ashes rivalry against England. I was a part of it when that really started to grow, when the rivalry really started to grow, it was right at the back end of my career," Ponting reflected.