“Are You Joking!?”: When Kevin Pietersen Was Surprised Upon Being Asked To Bowl At Ricky Ponting in Ashes 2006

Former England batter Kevin Pietersen was once taken aback after being asked to bowl at former Australia captain Ricky Ponting at peak form during the third Test match of Ashes 2006/07 at the WACA Stadium, Perth.

Already trailing behind 0-2 in a five-match series, England were yet again on the back foot during the third Test with the Aussies marching towards a huge second innings score. Ponting and former Australian opening batter Matthew Hayden had smashed individual half-centuries and were unbeaten at Stumps, Day 2, with the scorecard reading 119/1.

Quite early into the morning session of Day 3, the then English skipper Andrew Flintoff decided to throw the ball towards Pietersen – a decision which left the part-time off-spinner slack-jawed.

Kevin Pietersen Was Surprised Upon Being Asked To Bowl At Ricky Ponting in Ashes 2006

During an interaction with Ponting for Sky Sports hours before the start of Ashes 2023, Pietersen turned the clock back to the time Flintoff threw the ball towards him to perhaps offer some surprise element to the Hayden-Ponting pair.

Ponting was, in fact, asked to name an English bowler who he felt was vulnerable against facing back in the day. As Ponting was about to answer, Pietersen tried to hilariously have the former’s attention towards him in a bid to ask, ‘What about me?’

The legendary captain was quick to respond that it certainly wasn’t him that he ever dreaded facing against, as Pietersen broke into a laughter remembering the day he actually bowled to him.

“I remember bowling to him at the WACA one morning. Freddie [Andrew Flintoff] said, ‘Please come on and just bowl’. I was like, ‘Are you joking! I’m gonna bowl to Ricky Ponting at the WACA!'”

Pietersen, in fact, bowled five overs during the innings without much significant impact. He conceded 31 runs in the process at 6.2 runs per over. Australia went on to post a mammoth total of 528/5d, handing England a target of 557 runs.

The home side ultimately won the match by 206 runs, and took an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series. Pietersen did remain unbeaten at 60* during the second innings, but still has fond memories of bowling to an in-form Ponting in a Test match.

Kevin Pietersen Bowling Record vs Australia in Tests

Pietersen had played 27 Tests against Australia between 2005-2014, but had bowled across a mere nine innings. The off-spinner bowled 38 overs during this period and conceded 158 runs at an economy rate of 4.15 runs per over.

He had picked up a solitary wicket of former Australian captain Michael Clarke during the Adelaide Test match of the 2010/11 Ashes series, while the latter was batting at the score of 80 in the second innings. This was the very match during which Pietersen had smashed his maiden Test double century (227) on Australian soil.