Parting ways with KKR was amicable: Ponting

By Rahul Bajaj
for Cricketain.com

Published: January 21, 2010

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Melbourne: Australian skipper Ricky Ponting said on Wednesday that the process of parting ways with his Indian Premier League franchisee Kolkata Knight Riders was “amicable” and not playing in the IPL this year will help him focus on regaining the Ashes and prepare to retain the 2011 World Cup.

KKR bought out Ponting’s contract, a day before the auction for the third edition was to be held, considering he will not be available for the whole season.

Ponting, who skipped the entire second edition of the Twenty20 tournament in South Africa, was bought for USD 400,000 by KKR in 2008.

“It was an amicable process. I wanted to play for the Knight Riders but I was only available for a handful of games. For the all the right reasons the Knight Riders are looking for players who will be available for most, if not all, of the tournament in the hope of gaining more consistency after a couple of lean seasons,” said Ponting.

“I fully understand and accept the situation. In the end it (agreeing to the buyout) was an easy decision because it leaves me totally focused on the Ashes next summer and the World Cup. There are no distractions,” Ponting told The Australian.

Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly, who is back as the captain of Kolkata Knight Riders for the third edition of IPL, also confirmed that it was an amicable decision as the Australia captain would not have been available for many matches.

“A player like Ricky is irreplaceable. We would not have done that if he was available for the whole league. He can’t play for eight to 10 matches. It was a strategic decision taken after consultation with all parties,” he said.

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