The Indian cricket board has announced that Ricky Ponting is among 13 Australian players to sign contracts to play in an Indian Twenty-20 cricket league.
Australia captain Ponting and vice-captain Adam Gilchrist are among the Australians who accepted contracts from the $3 million Indian Premier League (IPL), which will be launched in April.
The Indian board is launching the IPL to counter the rival Indian Cricket League (ICL).
Ponting joins four other test captains, South Africa's Graeme Smith, Mahela Jayawardene of Sri Lanka, New Zealander Daniel Vettori and Shoaib Malik of Pakistan in the Indian board's inaugural Twenty-20 league.
Other key Australians in the league are opening batsman Matthew Hayden, pace bowler Brett Lee and all-rounder Andrew Symonds, who was voted best player in the recent limited-overs Australia-India series that Ponting's team won 4-2.
"The induction of the prodigious Aussie talent will add a new dimension to the Indian Premier League," said Lalit Modi, a vice president of the Indian cricket board.
Modi is the chief organiser of the Indian Premier League, which has now signed contracts with 44 international players.
Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, Nathan Bracken and Mitchell Johnson are the other signings from the Australian team that recently toured India.
Four more Australians joining the Indian league are Mike Hussey, Simon Katich, Jason Gillespie and Cameron White.
Two retired Australian test stars, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath have already expressed their willingness to play in the IPL, from which two top teams will qualify for an international Champions Twenty-20 league that is scheduled to start from October next year.