“I think Harmison will play”

"I reckon Harmison will play, yes," Ricky Ponting said. "I think he will play even if Flintoff is fit, they’ll play them both if they can.

"I think these conditions will suit him more than what the ones down at Cardiff would have done. I had the feeling he was very close to selection down there," Ponting added.

He explained: "Being as tall as he is, and the sort of bang it into the wicket bowler he is, you don’t get too many pitched up.

He’s a bit of a Curtly Ambrose type bowler in that regard. So when you get conditions like this where it will probably bounce a little bit more his style of bowling becomes pretty difficult.”

"There was a lot made of how he bowled in Worcester, and some people felt he should have been picked," Ponting said.

"But I think our guys overall did a reasonable job and played him pretty well."

Ponting said: "I haven’t noticed it for five years. I guess they are the battle scars you end up with after playing a sport like this for as long as I have. I’ve got a few others as well."

"It was an amazing day’s Test cricket," Ponting recalled.

"Hopefully, if we get the chance to bat first again it will be a slightly different result (in terms of Australia‘s first innnings).

"There is a great feel around the place, and all the history, and the very pround record that Australia have had here for so long makes you feel good about the place when you arrive," Ponting said.

"Everyone has been looking forward to playing here, and what it means to a lot of our younger guys in particular to play here.

"I think this is the first time at the ground for Nathan Hauritz and Peter Siddle. I had to show Sids the way round (in the pavilion and on to the field), he kept getting lost – ‘out through that door, mate, through that Long Room there’ – It’s very exciting for them."

Ponting said: "It would be nice. I’ve played two Tests here and not done very well at all.

"I’ve made a one-day hundred here on the last tour, which was a great feeling. I’ve just got to carry on from last week.

It’s up to me to lead the way with the bat again when I get the chance."

"We haven’t finalised our XI yet but there weren’t too many weaknesses in what we did last week so it would be pretty hard to make too many changes.