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 'Needs To Be Investigated...,' Ricky Ponting Calls For Investigation On Ball Change In Oval Test

image-lkr0ei20Umpires called for a ball change on Day 4 (Twitter)

Ricky Ponting has expressed a strong opinion against the replacement ball being used in the second Australian innings of the fifth Ashes 2023 Test match. The former Australian captain believes the on-field umpires, Joel Wilson and Kumar Dharmasena, committed a huge blunder by changing the ball late on Day 4 and the ICC needs to launch an investigation over the same.

The visiting openers responded strongly in their run-chase on Day 4, despite chasing a daunting 384-run target to seal the Ashes by a 3-1 margin. However, during the 37th over of the innings, the two umpires decided to change the ball deeming that it had gone out of shape after Mark Wood had struck Usman Khawaja on the helmet.

The replacement ball appeared significantly newer than the one previously used. While early stumps were called on Day 4 after the same over, the English bowlers jolted the Australian top-order the following morning by claiming three wickets in quick succession using the newer ball.

Ponting claims newer ball not comparable with older one

Amidst a run-induced break on the final day of the 2023 Ashes decider, Ricky Ponting expressed his concerns over an apparent difference between the older ball and the newer one. The cricketer-turned-commentator believes that the newer ball is significantly harder, and his claims were backed by Sky Sports ball-tracking data.

According to the data, it was found that the ball had more seam and swing than the one used on the fourth afternoon, which eventually led to three Australian wickets.

Ponting lambasted the two umpires, and stated that their “blunder” incited a huge moment in the Test match and their mistake needs to be investigated. While commentating for Sky Sports, he said:

“There's no way in the world you can even look at those two balls there and say in any way are they comparable. I just cannot fathom how two international umpires that have done that a lot of times before can get that so wrong. That is a huge moment in this game, potentially a huge moment in the Test match, and something I think actually has to be investigated.”

“The conditions were better for bowling this morning. But what I saw last night, that ball there, I'll put my hand up and say I've got absolutely no doubt at all that that ball would not have done anywhere near as much as what that one did this morning. Double the amount of movement this morning from yesterday afternoon, seam movement and swing. I think it's a huge blunder that needs to be investigated.”

In the meantime, ceaseless rains in London continue to disrupt proceedings at The Oval. The entire afternoon session was washed out, with Australia’s response stranded at 238-3.

By the time of resumption, the visitors will require another 146 runs for a win, while hosts England will look to aim for seven more wickets to level the series.