Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting revealed that the Indian players are no longer daunted by the prospect of playing at venues like the Gabba in Brisbane or the Optus Oval in Perth.

Ponting explained that India’s approach to Test cricket without any fear is the main reason for their recent success against Australia, particularly in the Border Gavaskar Trophy showdowns. 

Since their 2014 BGT win, Australia have not been able to win a single Test series against India, which has now extended to close to a decade.

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In addition, the Indian team broke the myth of Australia’s dominance in tests as they first won the 2018/19 series and then went on to reclaim the trophy in the 2020/21 series, on Australian soil.

BGT 2024: Ricky Ponting explains reason for India’s dominance over Australia in Test cricket

The former Australian captain was speaking on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast, where he was interviewed by former England captains and now pundits, Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain.

During the podcast, one of the topics of discussion was the upcoming Border Gavaskar Trophy in November where India will tour Australia for a five-match Test series. 

The most memorable Test series between the two sides was during the BGT series in 2020/21 where India made a miraculous comeback to win the series after being humiliated in the Adelaide Test where they were bowled out for only 36 runs.

“They [India] played incredibly well in Australia, the last two tours. They got bowled out for 36 in the second innings of the Test at Adelaide, and Virat Kohli then left and went home. It was like they’re done, the series is gone, but [Ajinkya] Rahane took over and they ended up knocking the Aussies of in that series,” Ponting said.

What was even more historic in that series was the fact that India had not only retained the trophy, but they also claimed victory at Australia’s traditionally unbreachable fortress, at the Gabba, in Brisbane.

“They won a game at the Gabba, which just doesn’t happen,” he added.

Interestingly, Atherton pointed out that the upcoming series is significant because it is rare for India to tour Australia for a five-match Test series, over the standard three or four-match series.

Moreover, the last five-match Test series between the two sides took place in the 1991/92 season, which Australia comfortably won 4-0.

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BGT 2024/25: Ricky Ponting deciphers the secret behind India’s dominance in Border Gavaskar Trophy Tests against Australia

Further, Atherton asked the former Australia captain about what he thought was the “secret” behind India’s dominance in recent BGT series against the Aussies.

“I think their batsmen adapt to overseas batting conditions very well. I don’t think they’re as daunted by the Gabba or the Optus Oval, as they maybe once were.”

“Maybe it is a selection thing, or they just don’t fear the big stage anymore,” he said.

Ponting revealed that he has observed that Indian youngsters playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) are forced to adapt to high-pressure situations quickly, which has helped them eliminate the fear of playing in the big stages.

“For the last 10 years being around the IPL, I’ve noticed that a lot of the young guys [don’t fear the big stage anymore] as the IPL is high-pressure, it is like a World Cup for them. Their batsmen are all very aggressive stroke-making players. They are not scared of failing,” he noted about the Indian cricketers.

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Ricky Ponting credits Virat Kohli’s captaincy for big role in change of India’s Test cricket fortunes

While Virat Kohli made his Test captaincy debut in 2014, it was as a stand-in for the injured MS Dhoni. 

However, his impact and presence as captain really started to rub off on his teammates from 2017, where India started making giant strides in the red-ball format.

One of the key departments that succeeded under Kohli’s leadership was fast bowling, which primarily included players such as Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami, who received the much-needed backing from their skipper to be ruthless and aggressive.

“Their fast-bowling depth is great. The leadership in the last 6-7 years has been strong, going back to Kohli’s start of captaincy, played a big role in turning the cricket around and Dravid has continued the same in the recent four years,” Ponting said.

“The influence of someone like that [Kohli] around a team would be great and they’ve got star players,” he concluded.

MORE: Ricky Ponting highlights Test stardom of Rishabh Pant and lauds his return to Indian team