ECB chief pleads with Brit fans to stop Ponting Boos

London, Aug 5 (ANI): The Chairman of the England and Wales Cricket Board, Giles Clarke, has appealed to English fans to stop booing Australian captain Ricky Ponting during the ongoing Ashes series and maintain the game's positive spirit.

The English crowd has enjoyed the prospect of getting under the Australian captain's skin, subjecting him to prolonged jeering and booing during the second and third Test matches at Lord's and Edgbaston respectively.

Clarke has written in the Headingley match program that Ponting has earned the respect and courtesy of the crowd and that the game may never see his like again, Fairfax News reported.

Clark also asked the supporters to respect both teams at a critical period in the series where England is leading 1-0 with two matches to go.

Crowds at various grounds have turned rough during the last two Ashes tours, as the England side has asserted itself after years of domination by the Australians.

Ponting has said that he isn't troubled by the crowd's cold response to him during matches.

"I am told that some people have been upset about the fact that some English fans were booing me, but I thought it was a terrific atmosphere to play in," Ponting writes in his column for The Times. (ANI)