‘Worst Possible Case’: Ricky Ponting Slams BCCI For IPL 2025 Mega Auction Scheduling Clash With IND vs AUS 1st Test Of BGT

Ricky Ponting expressed frustration at BCCI over the scheduling of the IPL 2025 mega auction, which is set to overlap with the first Border-Gavaskar Trophy match between India and Australia at Perth.

Ricky Ponting, the former Australian cricketer who is not the head coach for Punjab Kings (PBKS), vented his frustration at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for scheduling the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction during the opening Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25. Since Ponting will have to be with PBKS for the auction, he is set to miss his commentary duties with Australia’s Channel 7 for most of the 1st IND vs AUS Test at Perth.

Along with Ponting, his teammate from his playing days for Australia, Justin Langer will also have to miss his commentary duties with the channel to be in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for the IPL 2025 mega auction. Langer is the head coach of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). Not just Ponting and Langer, Daniel Vettori, the assistant coach for Australia, will also miss the first Test in a bid to be present at the auction as the head coach of the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).

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Worst Possible Case Scenario For Me And JL: Ponting

The auction is set to take place on November 24 and 25 which will be Day 3 and Day 4 of the Perth Test. Ponting called the scheduling of the mega auction ‘the worst possible case scenario’.

“It’s the worst possible case scenario for me and JL [Langer]. We for the last couple of months felt that it was probably going to be in the gap between the Test matches. It takes all the pressure off the players from both teams. There are a lot of players in both teams in the auction,” Ponting said to The Sydney Morning Herald.

“So I always thought it would have been in that gap because it just seemed better for everybody. But I don’t know why they’ve chosen the dates they have – it might have something to do with the game. The auction actually starts on air almost immediately after the end of play. So it might be something to do with broadcast," he added further.

“I'm calling the first day then flying out late Friday night to Jeddah. The auction is the 24th and 25th and then depending on how we're going through our auction, we'll see when I can return. Hopefully I'll get back for the end of Perth, and if not I'll be back on deck for the start of Adelaide,” Ponting said.