Ricky Ponting Shaun Young. It also included five future Test batsmen: Matthew Hayden, Matthew Elliott, Martin Love, Justin Langer and Stuart Law. Despite not batting as well as he "would have liked", Ponting returned to Australia with the fourth highest batting average—48.73. Tasmania toured Zimbabwe for five games ahead of the 1995–96 Sheffield Shield. Ponting struggled, aggregating 99 runs at a modest 24.75. By the end of October, he had signed a contract with the Australian Cricket Board, along with 22 other Australian cricketers. He opened the batting with Boon in Tasmania's first match of the Sheffield Shield season, scoring 20 and
Ricky Ponting as long-term vice-captain in place of Adam Gilchrist for Australia's away series in the Caribbean starting in April 2003. The first Test was not the first time Ponting had been vice-captain of the Australian Test team however, as he was thrust into the role against the West Indies in 2000 and England in 2001—because of injuries to Steve Waugh. Although Gilchrist had not done anything untoward, Ponting was elevated because Australian selectors wanted him to captain if Waugh was to be injured. This was Ponting's third tour to the Caribbean, and he was rested from the only warm-up match ahead