Former Test captain Ricky Ponting said it was ‘quite remarkable’ to be inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.

Ponting – Australia’s highest ever Test run-scorer, with 13,378 runs at an outstanding average of 51.85 – joined the likes of Sir Donald Bradman, Steve Waugh and Shane Warne in the Hall of Fame.

Athletes must be retired for two years before being eligible and it was no surprise that Ponting was inducted at the first available opportunity.

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He said he was honoured by the induction on an evening where golfer Jason Day won the coveted ‘The Don Award’ – given to the athlete or team who has most inspired the nation during the past year.

“It feels more real now,” he said.

“I must admit, I’ve thought about it a bit in the last week, but I’ve known about it for a long time.

“It’s not until you get here and you start rubbing shoulders with some of these people, you start realising what group you’ve become a part of.

“It’s quite remarkable, but it makes it more special when you hear the stories of others and you know you’re a part of that group.”

Ponting celebrates a century. Photo: Getty

Of Ponting’s 41 Test centuries – the most by any Australian – he said his top score, 257 against India in the Boxing Day Test of 2003, stood out.

“That happened to be Steve Waugh’s last series,” he said.

“I remember having a word to him at the start of the series and telling him I would do everything I could to send him off in the right way.

“I ended up making two double centuries in that series and the best one was the one at the ‘G.”

Ponting, who captained his country in 77 of his 168 Tests, feels Australian cricket is in good hands with new skipper Steve Smith.

“He’s an exceptionally driven young bloke,” he added.

“He wants to be the greatest player of all time and that’s a great thing to have.

“He wants to be the greatest player that Australia’s had and that’s fantastic.

“He’ll have a great relationship with the coach, he’ll have a great relationship with the selectors, because that’s just the sort of kid that he is, and he’ll make sure everyone in that dressing room is treated the same way.”

Ponting’s outstanding list of achievements also include 375 one-day internationals, in which he hit 30 hundreds at an average of 42.03.

He is the second highest run-scorer in Test cricket history and his pull shots and on-drives become the stuff of folklore as he entertained Aussie cricket fans right throughout his glittering career.

Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland paid tribute to the Launceston-born man.

“Ricky may have be small in stature but he’s a giant of the cricket world,” he said.

“Such was Ricky’s domination in the Test and one-day arena that his Australian records may never be broken.

“He was not only a phenomenal batsman but a selfless team man whose motives always centred around his team’s success.”