ICC hang fire over Ponting's bat

Australia captain Ricky Ponting will be allowed to continue using a carbon graphite-reinforced bat while the International Cricket Council (ICC) carries out further research, it was announced on Tuesday.

The ICC's cricket committee, however, said after a two-day meeting in Dubai that it did not want to upset the balance between bat and ball.

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar will head a sub-committee to look into the issue.

"We would like to stick to the tradition of using a wooden bat and a leather ball," Dave Richardson, ICC general manager (cricket), told reporters on Tuesday.

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He said the sub-committee would look into various issues including the use of carbon graphite, the width and depth of bats and 'corking' -- a practice also linked to baseball where the inside of a bat is replaced by cork to make it lighter and easier to swing.

"The ICC is growing increasingly concerned with issues surrounding the way in which bats are manufactured and 'enhanced'," chief executive Malcolm Speed added.

"There is a lot of responsibility resting on the bat manufacturers to ensure that the equipment that they produce conforms to the laws of the game and we want them to meet this responsibility."

Gavaskar, the cricket committee chairman, and Richardson will be joined by Arjuna Ranatunga of Sri Lanka, Angus Fraser of England and Australia's Tim May on the sub-committee.

Ponting started using the bat in Australia late last year. In the late 1970s Australia fast bowler Dennis Lillee was banned from using an aluminium bat in a test against England.

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