Ashes on our minds - Ponting

For the second time in his career Ricky Ponting is an Australian captain needing to reclaim the Ashes on home soil following another series defeat in England last year. Last time it served as a huge motivation as Australia stormed to a historic 5-0 whitewash during the 2006-07 contest and similar emotions are already starting to brew inside the skipper.

Since the previous series ended at The Oval last August talk has been about the return contest which starts in November although players from both sides have insisted attention remains focussed on more immediate challenges. Now, though, with Australia having arrived in England for a five-match one-day series Ponting admitted the Test series is starting to loom large.

"Whenever there is a big series coming up the build-up starts a fair way out - and for the Ashes it's already started," said Ponting. "The Ashes is probably on all of our minds a little bit. It's exciting for the game - there's nothing bigger as far as I'm concerned than an Ashes series.

"When it's in Australia as well and we need to win it back, it adds a little more to it. I'm expecting the guys to be in exactly the same frame of mind as they were for the return bout last time.

"Pretty much from now until the Ashes are over and done with in the middle of January, everything we do will have some sort of focus on the Ashes series. There will be no excuses for us come late November."

Ponting wasn't part of the Australia side that lost the World Twenty20 final to England in Barbados last month having retired from the format. Michael Clarke, who captained that team, played down the potential impact on the result on the Ashes and Ponting took a similar approach with regard to the upcoming five ODIs which start at The Rose Bowl on Tuesday.

"I don't think it will have much impact on the Ashes at all. There is a long way to go before the first Test match," he said. "[But] the guys will now want to push for a place in the Test team.

"There won't be much we don't know about England by the end of the summer. We already know each other pretty well. We've played a fair bit against each other and we're going to play a little bit more, but I like that."

Australia's squad for the one-day series includes a number of fringe Test players pushing for an Ashes place including Cameron White, Ryan Harris and possibly young legspinning allrounder Steven Smith.