Just days before the much awaited Ashes series, the legendary pace bowler Jeff Thomson has criticized the Australian captain Ricky ponting as “crap”.

He also said that, Ricky has never deserved to get the job and has not improved a bit in the five years at the helm.

Thomson said "I thought Ricky was crap when he was first captain in 2004 and nothing much has improved since then,"

"I'm not the only one who thinks that. I've always bagged him and everyone at home thinks he s**** at captaincy. He's a great player but captaincy is a totally different thing," he said at a charity dinner.

Thomson also criticized Ponting’s on field behavior, saying that his on-field mannerisms are not of a leader and he is the first player to panic when the team lands in trouble.

"He had only captained one side ever before. How did he get to lead Australia with that sort of experience? He was in a side that had very good players and now he's got a side that has average players. He's still left wanting," Thomson said.