Australian coach Mickey Arthur says Ricky Ponting is a wanted man for next year's Ashes series in England.
With Australia not playing another Test until the home series against South Africa in November/December, Ponting's future in the side was thought to be in some doubt.
The 37-year-old was axed from Australia's one-day squad earlier this year, leaving him with just Test cricket on his international calendar.
But Arthur says he has no concerns about Ponting losing his touch with the bat, and is backing the former skipper to play a key role in Australia's quest to regain the Ashes.
"I know there was a lot of media pressure and talk around Ricky, but Ricky's not going anywhere," Arthur said after arriving back in Perth following Australia's 2-0 Test series win against the West Indies.
"We hope Ricky's scoring enough runs to go to the Ashes in England.
"Ricky is definitely [in] no way considering retiring, I wouldn't have thought from my conversations with him, and he'll be fit and ready to go against South Africa."
Ponting, like most of Australia's batting line-up, struggled on the Windies tour.
The 165-Test veteran posted just 146 runs over three Tests at an average of 24.33, but Arthur said the tough conditions and some unlucky circumstances played a significant role in Ponting's lean return.
AAP
Tags: ashes, cricket, sport, australia First posted May 01, 2012 16:28:09
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