Ricky Ponting was keen on coaching Australia's T20I side before Sandpaper Gate
Ponting currently coaches Delhi Capitals in the IPL
Former Australia head coach Darren Lehmann has revealed he wanted Ricky Ponting to take charge of Australia's Twenty20 International (T20I) team.
In fact, Ponting, who won the Indian Premier League (IPL) as Mumbai Indians' head coach, was keen to manage Australia's T20I side but the Sandpaper Gate in South Africa in 2018 changed the course of Australian cricket.
"I look back now and I think I coached too long. I probably should have bowed out 12 months before that. I reckon four years is a good cycle when you're away from home 300 days a year. If you split the role there is more longevity because you don't have to do everything. And it has to be done properly so the T20 team can specialise. That's just sensible," Lehmann told the Herald and The Age.
During the 2017-18 summer and the following limited-overs tour of New Zealand, Ponting was Lehmann's assistant coach.
Ponting currently is the head coach of Delhi Capitals (DC), who are at the top of the IPL 2021 table.
"I had a few chats with Pat Howard. It never got to the detail of specifics, timing, resources, structure etc as there was no time pressure for that to happen. It was an open-ended discussion. However the events in South Africa in March 2018 led to so much change in Australian cricket and the appointment of Justin Langer to replace Darren Lehmann, across all three forms, was absolutely the right decision," Ponting told Heald and The Age.
Having won five World Cup titles, including two as Australia's captain, Ponting is arguably one of the best players to have graced the game of cricket. The Tasmanian, however, has said that his coaching role in the IPL is a priority right now.
"My life has changed a lot since then. IPL continues to be my coaching priority and it works well with my media commitments with the Seven Network, Cricket Australia and Sky in the UK. The rest of the year is spent with my family and enjoying a work/life balance that I have never had before. Right now, I would have to give up so much to take on a national role. It's just the wrong time for me," added Ponting.