For Ponting, the triumph is the culmination of years of building a squad capable of dominating global white-ball tournaments, as they have done, going unbeaten in ICC events since the 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup and the 2025 ICC Men’s Champions Trophy – before a loss to South Africa in the Super Eights in the 2026 T20 World Cup.
“This is a very, very strong Indian white-ball team, not just a T20 team. Back-to-back World Cups, hats off to them,” Ponting added.
The former Australia skipper highlighted that the squad’s volume of high-pressure cricket, both internationally and in the Indian Premier League, has helped shape a team built for major tournaments.
“The one thing that’s probably overlooked with this current team is the amount of experience and the amount of cricket a lot of these guys have played, whether it’s international cricket or even just the IPL,” he said.
