Global sportspersons tend to develop different images in different parts of the world.
In their home country, they are mostly revered. In other parts of the world, not so much.
In most cases, the animosity in the latter tends to subside once their playing career is over.
One such sporting personality who is enjoying a fresh lease of support among Indian cricketers and some section of supporters is Ricky Ponting.
During his time as a cricketer, Ponting the batsman gave a lot of pain to Indian cricket fans.
Crushing performances in Tests and ODIs from his bat against the Men In Blue often led to several moments of sorrow among fans in India.
For a while, it was only Ponting the batsman on whom venom was spewed on.
Post the shenanigans of Sydney 2008, Ponting the person had a completely different antagonist base.
It seemed like he would, forever, be a villain in the eye of an Indian fan.
However, as if the thunderstorms have given way to glorious sunshine, Ponting’s image has also changed ever since he retired and took up coaching in India.
First, Ponting helped in starting the transition from his time as captain to the beginning of the Rohit Sharma-era in the Mumbai Indians.
Two years later, he oversaw a tumultuous start for the franchise and with Rohit and the rest of the squad, helped them win their second IPL title.
Then last year, now overseeing work at the Delhi Capitals, he strategized with Shreyas Iyer, a worthwhile season for the franchise, when they reached the Playoff stage for the first time in seven years.
So what has caused this transformation?
In the last few days, key Indian players like Ishant Sharma and Rohit have openly praised him for his ability to bring the best out of players and for his ability to reach out to younger players.
The second of the points need a deeper introspection.
When books on cricket’s greatest players in the 21st century are written, Ponting stands a very good chance to be among the top three players to have played the game in the last 100 hundred years.
Hence there will certainly be an element of intimidation among the younger generation to approach a player of that stature.
That player can then look at that in two ways: either he waits for the younger player to get back to him or he goes forward and through conversation, reduces his anxiety.
In that sense, it wouldn’t have been surprising had Ponting done the former, but understanding the anxiety, he chose to do the latter.
That’s an attitude which many recently-retired cricketers-turned-coaches can adopt: How to make a young player comfortable by approaching him rather waiting for him to come to you.
The IPL has players of various kinds: some trying to show their talent, some trying to reclaim form and hence their spot in the team and many others.
Having a coach like Ponting, who keeps his ego away and helps younger players, could help several of them get better and understand their game a lot better.
Another aspect of Ponting’s cricket that has been synonymous is the winning mentality.
It came out in a good way and sometimes in a bad way during his playing career, but as a coach, he has induced that thought process into many players in a positive way that made a difference, particularly in a team like the Capitals last year.
It remains to be if such an influence can be seen in the IPL this year, but if his coaching attitude continues to remain the same, then the transition from one of cricket’s most successful captains to one of its most formidable coaches will be a matter of time.
