He has led Australia to victory in the two previous World Cup competitions; has a 100 percent success record as captain; has been a stalwart in the two tournaments prior to 2003 and 2007, and has established himself as one of the greatest of all batsmen in both Tests and ODIs.
But at 36, it is reasonable to assume that this will be the last World Cup that Ricky Ponting will be seen in. Already there are indications that there is a palpable fall in his high batting standards - he is not playing with the majesty of old and the fall in the averages is alarming.
Besides, his deputy Michael Clarke, one or two others have been mentioned as players who could take over the captaincy not only in ODIs but also in Tests and while he may weather the storm and continue to play for a couple of years more in both formats of the game, there is no way one can see him still around when the competition rolls around again in 2015.
In his farewell World Cup let us treasure the batting of Ponting whose tally of 1537 runs is second only to Sachin Tendulkar.
He holds the record of four centuries (along with three others) and most appearances (39 matches along with Glenn McGrath).
Besides, Ponting and McGrath are the only members of three victorious World Cup squads. A little known fact is that he holds the record of most catches (25) in the World Cup.
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