"My absolute priority is to the Australian cricket team. I wanted to play on through the coming week and continue to lead the team in the series against New Zealand. However, the decision was made by the national selection panel as part of their plan to rest all players at appropriate times during this year," said Australia skipper Ricky Ponting.
"I have reluctantly accepted their decision and will be eagerly awaiting my return to the team," he said.
"Is he mentally and physically fatigued? Is he better off having a couple of games (out)? Will he come back fresher and stronger for the team? "I really don’t know because I think as a captain I didn’t rest, so we didn’t really throw that scenario up," Waugh said.