At the Close of Play

At the Close of Play
Ricky Ponting

Love him or loathe him, Ricky Ponting is one of the biggest names in cricket, having been at the heart of so many memorable Ashes and Test encounters over the years. Coinciding with the end of Ponting’s spectacular career, ‘At the Close of Play’ is a must-read for all cricket fans.For so long the scourge of English cricket, Ricky Ponting – unarguably one of cricket’s all-time greats – looks back on the story of his remarkable life and career.With his customary honesty and candour, Ponting reflects on a lifetime at the crease – from childhood prodigy to the highs and lows of his extraordinary international career.But beyond the triumphs, scandals and his own private struggle to maintain his later form, this remarkable autobiography will offer rare insights into an elite sporting career with Ricky’s reflections on leadership, captaincy, winning, defeat, competitiveness, teamwork, the greats of the game and the lessons learned at the helm of Australia’s cricket team.This autobiography, of a very private man, and one who the English public loved to hate, will resonate with lovers of cricket as well as anyone who strives to reach the top of their chosen field.

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First published by HarperCollinsPublishers 2013

FIRST EDITION

© Ricky Ponting and Geoff Armstrong 2013

Thematic features © Ricky Ponting and James Henderson 2013

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Source ISBN: 9780007544752

Ebook Edition © NOVEMBER 2013 ISBN: 9780007544776

Version: 2014-07-23

For my beautiful wife Rianna and our gorgeous children Emmy and Matisse

And for Mum, Dad, Drew and Renee

Thanks to you all for always being there for me

Cover (#u505e3399-4c9f-59c0-b440-b45dc332e075)

Title Page (#ue99c726f-d1e6-5fe1-bc70-e1762b538527)

Copyright

Dedication (#u835722ab-41f8-5943-8cc4-bed06eca9237)

Insights

The Ponting Foundation (#ulink_ddca6f40-1f15-527e-8f2f-a82e85349379)

Giving back

My routine

Prologue Invermay Park

1. THE FIRST INNINGS

1 Backyard Cricket

2 Playing with Dad

3 Out of Tasmania

4 Punter

5 In the Company of Boonie

6 An Angry Young Man

7 Making the Team

8 Retaliate First

9 The Hundred That Got Away

10 Best Seat in the House

11 High Security

12 Dropped

13 Hope Builds, Fear Destroys

2. AT THE CREASE

14 Solidarity Forever

15 I’m Not Going, I’m Staying

16 Betting Rings and Broken Helmets

17 The Wrong Place at the Wrong Time

18 Starting Over

19 Mateship Matters