Ricky Ponting and Shane Warne speak to the press after completing a clean sweep against Pakistan
Peter English05-Jan-2005
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Ricky PontingOn rating the summer
We’ve played some very good cricket and we’ve played
some that hasn’t been our absolute best. We get
ourselves in trouble but we get out of it very quickly
– we’ve done it in both the series [against New
Zealand and Pakistan].On winning the third Test
Today wasn’t our best cricket, we didn’t bowl all that
well. Letting them get 60 runs ahead wasn’t our best.On the Warne-MacGill partnership
They are different types of bowlers. You can still
bowl them together and have confidence that they are
not going to be scored heavily against at each end.
It’s very enjoyable having them both in the side.On why their results improved in this match
I thought they bowled better. In different times
during the game they were trying to work in a
partnership and that might have been the difference.On Shane Watson’s debut
He fitted into Test cricket really well and did a good
job with the ball. He was surprisingly quick, bowling
over 140kmph at some times, and he looked comfortable
with the bat. In the future I’m sure he’ll play a lot
more Test cricket.On using the same balance in the future
Maybe, maybe not. It’s unusual for us of late to play
two legspinners. Going to New Zealand, the wickets
will probably be flatter and won’t turn as much.
Playing two legspinners is unlikely, so we’ll probably
go back to a more structured line-up.On resting players for the one-day series
They will be at different stages. I’d like 14 players
in the squad like we did for the Chappell-Hadlee
Series. We’ve played nine Tests in 13 weeks so it is
pretty taxing.Shane WarneOn his bowling
It’s nice bowling on this wicket. I was happy with my
bowling, but I thought I was a bit inconsistent. I put
that down to being the end of the summer and being a
little bit weary. Another summer gone and another
summer closer to the end. That’s my summer gone, but
now I can concentrate on Pura Cup cricket for
Victoria.On coming back from his ban
I’ve played 13 Tests since I came back and got 75
wickets so I believe I’m bowling as well as I ever
have. I do feel fitter, fresher and more relaxed – my
attitude is completely different. I’ve had another
good summer.On bowling with MacGill
It worked pretty well. Out of the 18 wickets we got
13, on a wicket like that the spinners should get at
least half the wickets. Having Shane Watson in the
side helped, we generally only have four bowlers so
the quicks didn’t get over-bowled. Normally in that
sort of situation I’d bowl 40 overs but I bowled 24 or
25 in the first innings. That worked pretty well.On the comparisons with MacGill
Stuey and I get on fine. I think the comparisons are
unfair on Stuey. When we both play in a Test we enjoy
chatting to each other and talking about the match. For
me it’s the same mindset. We’re lucky, when we bring in
a spinner, that we’ve got Stuey.On Pakistan’s performance
They’ve made 650 runs in two hits so I think they’re
playing pretty well. Making that many runs, you are
going to win a lot of games. Where it got away from
them was Gilly and Punter’s partnership, and the way
Gilly got his runs so quickly. A lot of people say we
should declare earlier, but sometimes it’s only
half-way through the Test by the time we’re a couple
of hundred runs ahead.On Shoaib Akhtar
He gave his heart out and tried his best in the
series. He’s the fastest bowler in the world and got a
couple of five-fors. He’s obviously not as fit in this
Test or he would have bowled more than 15 overs.On Danish Kaneria
Danish Kaneria bowled extremely well, he’s a real
talented bowler and I’d like to see him settle down a
bit more rather than rushing his bowling. Maybe he
could change his line because he bowls a little bit
outside off stump, which the batsmen can leave.
