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Injured Australian captain Ricky Ponting will dust off his bat for the first time in a month this week as he ramps up his race to be fit for the World Cup.
Ponting may even take to the SCG nets on Wednesday at the same time his fully fit teammates walk onto the field against England in the sixth limited overs match of a series wrapped up 4-1 in Brisbane on Sunday night.
Having taken the fractured finger into the fourth Test of the Ashes series, Ponting endured his captaincy nadir as the Australians lost by an innings to surrender the urn, then suffered a similar fate in Sydney as the captain sat it out.
He has since undergone surgery and spent plenty of time pondering the future.
No doubt he has also observed the fortunes of his deputy Michael Clarke, who has excelled as captain of the limited overs team despite raising the ire of some spectators with a handful of unconvincing innings.
Booed as he walked out to bat in Brisbane, Clarke responded with only his third international half century of the home summer, and Ponting will hope for a similar score when he next plays.
It is highly unlikely that Ponting would be considered for the final limited overs match against England in Perth on Sunday, leaving him to make his return in the first of Australia’s two World Cup warm-up matches in India.
The Ponting forecast appears much more promising than those for Nathan Hauritz and Shaun Marsh.
Marsh does not yet know the extent of the hamstring injury he picked up in Brisbane, and will undergo scans on Tuesday.
However a lengthy history of hamstring trouble does not bode well for Marsh, who made selectors blush for not picking him in the World Cup squad with a brilliant century at Hobart.
Hauritz (dislocated shoulder) is only a slim chance to prove himself ready for the start of the Cup.
Mike Hussey’s (hamstring) recovery is progressing more smoothly, and Shaun Tait is likely to be considered for Wednesday’s match after recovering from a glute strain.
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