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New Delhi, Jan 17 (IANS) Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has questioned the Ashes selection calls, saying he is still unable to understand why Josh Inglis was preferred over Beau Webster during the series.

Despite making an impressive start to his Test career, including a match-winning performance on debut during last year’s Border-Gavaskar Trophy finale, Webster was left out of Australia’s starting XI for November’s Ashes opener in Perth, with fellow all-rounder Cameron Green taking his spot at No. 6.

The 32-year-old was also sidelined for the following two Tests in Brisbane and Adelaide, with national selectors instead calling up reserve wicketkeeper Inglis, who posted scores of 23, 32 and 10 batting at No. 7.

Webster finally got a chance during the New Year’s Ashes Test at the SCG, where he scored an unbeaten 71 and took three wickets with his part-time off spin.

“At the start I was surprised they went with Inglis ahead of Beau. With the selectors, I know they look very deeply into data with these things. There must have been something there; a metric and Inglis must have better numbers. But I can’t figure out how they did that, to be honest,” Ponting told SEN Tassie.

Ponting suggested the decision was puzzling, especially given Webster’s form and ability to offer greater balance to the side, and felt the selectors missed an opportunity by overlooking him throughout the Ashes.

“I was surprised, but every time I see Beau play, he just continues to put forward a case as to why he should be in the side. Now we know an opportunity has come up at No. 5 with Usman Khawaja not there. I can’t see any world in which Travis Head doesn’t continue as opener, so maybe it’s Beau’s chance to grab that No. 5 spot.

“He may not be the flashiest or the most stylish, but he’s a gamer. He knows what has to happen in situations, ball or field. It will be hard to leave him out going forward,” Ponting added.

Last week, Webster had confessed he was “disappointed” to miss selection for the first four Tests of the Ashes campaign.

–IANS

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Stavanger (Norway), June 1 (IANS) Round 5 of Norway Chess 2025 delivered gripping action across all boards. While all three classical games ended in draws, the intensity remained high as each matchup progressed to Armageddon.

The games Arjun Erigaisi against Hikaru Nakamura, Wei Yi against World Champion Dommaraju Gukesh, and Fabiano Caruana against Magnus Carlsen ended in hard-fought draws.

Arjun Erigaisi, Wei Yi and Magnus Carlsen triumphed in their Armageddon games, earning the crucial extra points.

With his Armageddon win, Magnus Carlsen continues to lead the standings, reinforcing his commanding presence in this year’s event. The tournament continues tomorrow with Round 6, featuring the highly anticipated rematch between World Champion Dommaraju Gukesh and World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen.

The Norway Chess Women’s tournament saw another exciting day with a decisive win for Vaishali Rameshbabu against Sarasadat Khademalsharieh. It marked her first classical victory in this year’s edition of Norway Chess.

The two remaining games Anna Muzychuk against World Champion Wenjun Ju, and Humpy Koneru against Lei Tingjie, were decided in Armageddon, emphasizing the intense competition in the women’s field, where each point is crucial.

Wenjun Ju and Humpy Koneru prevailed in their Armageddon games, earning the important extra points.

Earlier, Carlsen showed his class with an instructive victory in the endgame against Indian No. 2 Arjun Erigaisi. The Norwegian superstar, who had lost two Armageddon games in the last two rounds, made a strong statement with this win on home turf.

In the game between World Champion Dommaraju Gukesh and World No. 3 Fabiano Caruana, the American was leading almost the whole game, with significant winning chances. However, he could not convert his advantage due to Gukesh’s superb defensive skills. Gukesh then went on to win the Armageddon game convincingly.

Norway Chess is one of the world’s premier chess tournaments, bringing together the top male and female players in a distinctive 6-player double round-robin format. The 2025 edition is running from May 26 to June 6.

–IANS

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