JOIN USPonting admitted England had outplayed the Australians in the second Test, which the tourists won by an innings and 71 runs to take a 1-0 lead in the series, but denied there was a gulf in class between the two sides.
Ponting also said the time for talk was over and he expected his players to spend the nine days before the third Test in Perth thinking about how they were going to improve.
“We've been talking a lot about how we're going to change things, how we're going to rectify things, but our actions have been letting us down,” he said.
“It's a bad loss, a week off will do this team a world of good, think about what they need to do as individuals, and what we need to do as a team, to work our way back into the series.”
Australia's bowlers, who have been a majore concern for the hosts, have taken just six English wickets in the last five days of Test cricket over the first two tests at the cost of 1,137 runs.
“We didn't get many wickets in the second innings in Brisbane and we didn't get many here this week,” said Ponting. “Once again I think it's execution that let us down this week.
“I don't think England have more firepower than we have, they have just executed it better and the England batsmen have put our guys under sustained pressure.”