'Our performance unacceptable'

Coach Mickey Arthur was soft yet strong in his opinions on Saturday during a press meet when asked about the performance of Australia in the last two one-dayers against India and Sri Lanka.

Excerpts:

On the defeat against Sri Lanka in Sydney: Last night was unacceptable to be honest, we were well and truly outplayed, it's really disappointing and we need to lift big time for tomorrow. The guys are hurting and this is an opportunity for them to atone for what happened last night. I'm not one to go wielding changes after one poor performance, and if they don't atone for it they know what the consequences are.

On being mentally jaded after a long summer: It is going to be a factor. We've pushed the guys incredibly hard in terms of our intensity and our expectations, and some guys are feeling the effects of that. But we know what the schedule is, we have to make sure we manage the boys correctly.

On selection and rotation policies: The communication around the team has been really good, players know exactly where they stand all the time. Perhaps, the one thing that is lacking is the information that has gone out to media and public, and that's one thing we can have a look at.

On Ricky Ponting’s poor form in ODIs: Ricky is a class act. There is no way you can write off a champion like Ricky. He faced same issues around the first couple of Tests, and he came through the Test series, had a great series against India and I hope he turns it around tomorrow (Sunday).

On Ponting’s captaincy: It's totally Michael Clarke's team and Ricky is very aware of that. Ricky was outstanding around the group, he oozes confidence and to have a guy like Ricky leading the ship…we are in a fortunate position if something does happen to Clarke.
On whether Ponting should quit one-dayers: If I have to be totally honest Ricky is a little bit jaded, like a couple of our Test players that have played all summer. But that is the treadmill of international cricket and they have to find a way out.

I'd like to see Ricky in our team all the time, but as I've said through the summer, every cricketer's currency is performance. A character like Ricky is someone you want around the team all the time because he's so inspirational, and he's still our fittest player and the hardest trainer. He's a fantastic example to every guy who comes into this team.

On Warner being not given captaincy: We saw huge potential in Dave. We want to grow him as a leader. He's not ready yet and he knows that. We have communicated that to him. In terms of taking guys on the field right now, he’s not ready for that yet and he understands that. I reckon he could be a great leader in a few years to come. You talk about succession planning, we need to find a leader and he's one of those guys on our radar.

On Brad Haddin: The door is not closed on Brad. He has to go out and turn performances in. We can't guarantee positions to any body, but they need to be able to perform.