Lessons learnt,Ponting assures better show

Australia are not exactly favourites at next months World Twenty20 Championship given their past record but skipper Ricky Ponting...

Australia are not exactly favourites at next months World Twenty20 Championship given their past record but skipper Ricky Ponting feels its hard to predict a teams chances in a completely unpredictable format.

Australia were ousted in the semi-finals of the first edition and have won only 11 of the 21 T20 Internationals they have played till date. But Ponting believes his side would put up a better show in the event starting June 5.

I think the game is hard to judge if you try to get a form line,it is that sort of game, he said,adding his men have learnt their lessons from the last edition in South Africa and are expected to come up with a better show this year.

We will be very well prepared for that,we have learnt a lot about the game in the last couple of years, he said. We were disappointed with the way we exited the tournament the last time around. You can expect a bold showing from Australia.

England ready to fire: Flower

England coach Andy Flower feels the hosts will make the most of home conditions and are raring to correct their poor Twenty20 record in the recent past. We havent played good T20 but that doesnt mean we cant do well, Flower said in an interview with Big Hitter magazine. One of the reasons we havent nailed Twenty20 is because some of our internationals are not very experienced at it, he said. Weve done a lot of thinking and analysis from what weve seen at the IPL,so weve got some good information that should help us.

Flower believes England now have the players suited to T20. Ravi Bopara has shown what a class player can do at the top of the order,which you need against the new ball. It is important to have a blend in your batting and I believe we have that in our side, he said. Down the order we have players like (Dimitri) Mascarenhas,(Owais) Shah,(Luke) Wright and (Graham) Napier, he added.

Arthur warns of SA strength

South Africa coach Micky Arthur is also confident his team will provide keen competition. I dont want to sound arrogant,but I dont think there are too many weak spots. Its going to be how we actually gel as a team and how we perform straight up. It will be vital for us to be getting some momentum,and that we can only do on the cricket field. So,in a way,that will be our test, Arthur told Cricinfo.

Story continues below this ad

Arthur also defended Kalliss selection and said the all-rounder had proved his worth in the IPL. Jacques gives us two clear options,in batting and bowling. So he is two players rolled into one. He has shown what he is capable of. In fact,he was in our team even before IPL. We had picked our team before that tournament, he added.

Yuvi,Dhoni Indias trump cards: Greg

Former India coach and Australian captain Greg Chappell feels Mahendra Singh Dhonis brilliant captaincy and Yuvraj Singhs aggression make defending champions India the strongest contenders to lift the title in England.

It is very hard to predict who will win the trophy. But I think India are the strongest contenders to retain the title. Pakistan are unpredictable and Australia too have improved a lot in this format. It will be quite open this time, Chappell said.

India have a slight edge over other teams. They have trump cards like Dhoni and Yuvraj. Dhoni is among the best captains today. Yuvraj was out of colour in the IPL but,according to me,he is one of the most dangerous batsmen in the shortest version of cricket. He will give headaches to all rival captains, he said.