Ponting says Sehwag’s ‘cheating’ claim is insulting

“There is no point in having a catching pact when the Australians are claiming one-bounce catches,” Sehwag had told a television channel.

“We’d have won the Sydney Test match if they hadn’t claimed catches taken off half-volleys in that game.” Ponting returned the volley today, suggesting the Indians had short memories.

“That’s fairly insulting (to say we claimed catches that weren’t). In the first innings (in the Sydney Test) I didn’t claim a catch of which I wasn’t 100 per cent sure,” Ponting said ahead of the first Test starting in Bangalore on Thursday.

“It’s amazing how they’ve picked out a lot of negatives from the Sydney game and don’t seem to be speaking about the Perth Test (the third Test which India won), where we probably had the same things happen to us,” Ponting added.

“Not one member of the Australian team has spoken about that — we go about our cricket in different ways.” India lost the Sydney Test by 122 runs after Michael Clarke, who picked up a contentious catch off Sourav Ganguly on the final day, collected three wickets in the final over.

India captain Anil Kumble later said only one team played the match in the spirit of the game. Ponting was, however, happy that the Sydney result still weighed heavily on the minds of the Indians.

“That they are still thinking about the Sydney Test is a good thing for us, we’ve obviously moved on, a long time since then,” he said.

“I’m not sure what they are trying to achieve. It was a Test we won, a crucial Test for the overall series. As I said at the time, it was one of the best moments I’ve had on a cricket field. To win the way we did was an outstanding effort by the team.”