5 careers which never took off under Ricky Ponting’s captaincy

#5 Ben Hilfenhaus

Ben Hilfenhaus' Test career eventually ended with 99 wickets in 27 matches

Yet another tall fast bowler with the ability to swing the ball both ways, Ben Hilfenhaus struggled with injuries and often found himself out of the national side as Australia rebuilt themselves post the days of the stalwarts of the early twenty-first century. Despite being presented with an opportunity to cement his place in the team considering Glenn McGrath’s retirement and Brett Lee’s fragility, Hilfenhaus could not make the most of his chances in either format.

He performed exceptionally against a strong Indian batting line up at home in 2011-12 – 27 wickets in 4 Tests came at 17.22 – bowling out Rahul Dravid thrice. An equally good outing in the West Indies followed in 2012, but against South Africa at home the following season, he struggled against potent batsmen. Eventually, Hilfenhaus ended with 99 Test wickets in 27 matches to go with 29 in 25 ODIs.