Ponting watches Kumble stew

Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown, especially when it's under scrutiny from 1.1 billion cricket-mad Indians.

Australian captain Ricky Ponting has watched the local media treatment of his Indian counterpart Anil Kumble with a combination of anticipation and fascination, sympathy and surprise.

The anticipation came pre-series when Ponting pondered the role the vast and often excitable Indian media could play in the the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, particularly with so many ageing warriors in the home side.

The fascination is much the same for any Australian cricketer, who thinks he's under the microscope at home until he arrives in India to discover just how intense and unrelenting the spotlight is on the subcontinent.

The sympathy is natural from one captain to another.

And the surprise was Ponting's response to Kumble's reaction to his media bake this week, published in his syndicated column, which sounded touchy, hurt and less worldly than one might expect of an intelligent man with 18 years experience on the global stage.

"He should know better I suppose, shouldn't he?" Ponting told AAP.

"I mean we've all understood how difficult it is for their players to play here in India, the spotlight from the people, the public, let alone the media, is pretty intense, and immense, so yeah I'm a bit surprised that he'd be surprised by it."

Criticism goes with the territory for international captains, even moreso when they are not performing with bat or ball.

Some have handled it better than others.

Mark Taylor's grace during his 1996-97 form slump was remarkable, extending to the point where at a press conference he interjected helpfully when a journalist stammered a question.

"It's alright, you can ask it," said Taylor, "am I going to drop myself?"

Kumble was less accommodating, responding sharply to the wave of negativity he has received from reporters, former captains and members of the public dialling in to talk shows on one of the nation's cricket-only sports channels.

"Over the past few days, given all the media attention I have received before and during the match, with various uncharitable comments on my fitness and retirement and performance as a player and captain, it does seem like I'm back in Australia again," Kumble wrote.

"That time ... saw me unfortunately having to split my time between playing cricket and handling a host of unnecessary off-field issues.