Ponting fitness boost for injury-hit Aussies

Ricky Ponting has given his struggling side a boost by expecting to be fully fit and pain-free when he arrives in the Caribbean next week. Ponting, who missed the 3-0 thumping at the hands of New Zealand with back trouble, had three cortisone injections to reduce inflammation caused by bone spurs in his spine, but said much of the pain had eased.

"My back's fine," Ponting told a business luncheon in Sydney. "[The doctors] said on the day that I had the injections it would be three to four days of not doing much before the injection settles down.

"It's been about a week and the last few nights I've slept a lot better and felt a lot better in the morning. Hopefully, when I get to the West Indies I'll be pain-free and ready to go."

He also said Australia may consider batting second at the World Cup after they conceded the four greatest run-chases in limited-overs history during the past 14 months. "We're going to come up against some small grounds in the World Cup, so the consideration of batting second is something there to think about," Ponting said. "That straight away eases a bit of the pressure on the bowlers."

Ponting said much of the aura surrounding Australian cricket had diminished following five consecutive losses. "I think it will have an affect on the other teams, they'll say, 'hang on England just beat Australia in the finals, New Zealand just beat Australia 3-0, why can't we beat them'," Ponting told the audience. "Other teams around the world will be thinking Australia are beatable now, where only a few weeks ago everybody was wondering how any other team in the world was going to compete with us."

Ponting later told reporters: "I don't think the team's in any dire straits at the moment. We've had a few injuries and lost a few guys, but I'm pretty confident that we'll be ultra competitive in every game we play."

He said he felt good enough to play a round of golf last Friday, reportedly on the advice of back specialists, who claimed swinging a club would help maintain movement while not aggravating the inflamed area. There are five Australians struggling with injuries three weeks out from their World Cup defence, but Ponting and fellow batsman Michael Clarke (hip) are the two players giving least concern.

The opener Matthew Hayden has been told to rest for up to three weeks to recover from the fractured big toe suffered while scoring an Australian-record 181 not out against New Zealand on Tuesday. Andrew Symonds remains in doubt, but he believes he is making good progress from shoulder surgery.

Brett Lee is the biggest worry, with Cricket Australia sending him for scans on Friday and they will be reviewed over the weekend. The selectors will make a ruling on Lee's fitness before Australia fly for the Caribbean next week. Lee said last week he had only a 50-50 chance of playing in the World Cup after damaging ankle ligaments during training.