Deep Dasgupta, a former wicketkeeper for India, thinks that Australia great Ricky Ponting—who coaches the Delhi Capitals of the Indian Premier League—should be more impartial in his evaluation of Indian players.

Speaking to Sports Today on Monday, Deep Dasgupta said that although Ricky Ponting has been coaching many current Indian players in the IPL, it is possible that he made a mistake in evaluating those players.

Australia vs. India, Fifth Test Day in Sydney: Overview and Highlights

Of note, Ponting had firmly stated on Twitter that India would not score more than 200 runs in the fourth game. Nevertheless, a match-saving partnership of 148 runs for the fourth wicket was struck by Rishabh Pant and Cheteshwar Pujara. India easily secured a draw, losing just five wickets in their second innings, thanks to an attacking 97 from Pant off just 118 balls and a reliable 77 from Pujara, who used 205 balls.

“It is clear that, at least in terms of red-ball cricket, he does not think highly of them. That is pretty obvious, I think. I have heard mixed reviews about Ricky Ponting’s abilities as a coach. Many positive things are said about Ricky Ponting as a coach. That is a reasonable assessment of his viewpoint, Deep Dasgupta said Sports Today.

Additionally, Deep Dasgupta mentioned that Ricky Ponting will be playing in the 2021 Indian Premier League alongside players like Ajinkya Rahane, R Ashwin, and Rishabh Pant in two months. It should be interesting to see what kind of banter they have.

“In two months, he will see the same people in the dressing room. I would love nothing more than to be a fly on the wall and hear these guys out. I am talking about both sides—Ricky on the one hand and all the other Indian players on his team—and what they have to say to one another. A little more balance is what I would like to see. He has spent a lot of time with Indian athletes. Perhaps his evaluation of Indian players was inaccurate,” Deep continued.