\u201cI\u2019m as Aussie as anyone, and I love watching the way they (England) play. The Aussies embraced it and learnt about it the last time they were here. They\u2019ll have an understanding now of what is a slightly more refined version of what England started a few years ago,\u201d Ponting was quoted as saying by The Times on Saturday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI think they can (bat aggressively in Australia), and they will definitely try. It\u2019s the way they naturally play, and it\u2019s the way the coaches and captain want them to play. It\u2019s the way they need to play \u2014 it just sets up everything for England, putting immediate pressure back on the bowlers.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cYou (the fielding side) have to adapt really quickly. They probably hold the key in Australia. If they can bat really well at the top, and set things up, that will give them a good chance in the series,\" he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He also believes England have recently shown the ability to adapt their ultra-attacking Bazball approach and avoid being one-dimensional. \u201cWhen it first started, it looked like Joe (Root) got carried away a bit. He changed his game. He\u2019s gone back to playing normally.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cOllie Pope is naturally aggressive and scores pretty quickly. Stokes might have the lowest strike rate of all the batters since it began (he does). (Ben) Duckett and (Zak) Crawley are the two leading the way. So there\u2019s been some refinement, and against the best teams they needed it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Ponting further said it is unclear what kind of pitches will be prepared for England in the upcoming Ashes. \u201cIt\u2019ll be interesting to see which way we prepare our tracks. I don\u2019t think the Aussies will be saying anything to the groundsmen. Certainly, throughout my time, I didn\u2019t speak to the groundsman, and even my coaches didn\u2019t speak to him.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThey always expected them to prepare the best wicket they could\u2026 I don\u2019t really know which way England want it. They probably play their best cricket when they\u2019ve got flatter pitches, because that\u2019s what they need for their batting, but in Australia they probably need something in the wickets to help their bowling,\" he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Ponting further said it is unclear what kind of pitches will be prepared for England in the upcoming Ashes. \u201cIt\u2019ll be interesting to see which way we prepare our tracks. I don\u2019t think the Aussies will be saying anything to the groundsmen. Certainly, throughout my time, I didn\u2019t speak to the groundsman, and even my coaches didn\u2019t speak to him.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cArcher adds so much to their line-up, that bit of extra pace that lifts everyone\u2019s energy. And he\u2019s done well against Australia in the past, and so has Wood. If they get both of them right, the attack looks pretty strong. Gus Atkinson looked good, and he\u2019ll bowl OK in Australia.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n