Ricky Ponting

Ricky_PontingRicky Ponting, the most uncompromising player of his generation, grew into Australia's most successful run-maker and only sits below Bradman in the country's overall ratings. It takes an extremely critical eye to diminish his run-scoring achievements, which seem to collect new records in every series. Like spotting a celebrity, it's necessary to look twice when analysing Ponting, first as the archetypal modern batsman, then as the country's 42nd Test captain. There is no doubt about his greatness after taking guard, but his leadership has been under scrutiny for much of his reign. While his blade has sparkled, his stewardship is pock-marked by two Ashes defeats in England, the first since Billy Murdoch in the 19th century to achieve the feat, and stumbles to South Africa and India.  Those results haven't stopped him from becoming the most successful captain in Test history after passing Steve Waugh's 41 wins in the 2009-10 Boxing Day Test. In the same match he overtook Shane Warne's 92 victories as the most by an individual, and he has never lost a World Cup game. For the first three years of his reign he was in charge of a superstar unit and did not have to decide much tactically, but once that group headed for retirement he had to change from a manager to moulder.