Australia's comprehensive one-day win over England on Sunday should act as a warning that the world champions are at last finding their form just before the Ashes, according to Ricky Ponting.
Asked if the seven-wicket victory, built on five wickets from Brett Lee and a Ponting century, should be seen as an important pointer, the Australian captain replied: "Yes, I think so.
| |||||||||||
The sides are now level at 1-1 with the deciding one-dayer at The Oval on Tuesday. The Ashes begin at Lord's on July 21.
Ponting accepted that the toss has helped his bowlers get the best of the early seam movement at Lord's but said he felt the key to the result had been an intense training session on Saturday.
"We spoke a lot about those things yesterday. It was a pretty big game for us. We billed it that way before the game. I'm not surprised at all that I'm sitting here having won the game so convincingly.
"I felt there was a little more spark about us over the last couple of days."
He is also delighted with his own return to form after a run of poor scores.
"It was nice to score a hundred at Lord's. I haven't exactly set the world on fire yet and it's my first century at the home of cricket, and Brett's first five-wicket haul. It's a nice milestone."
England captain Michael Vaughan was keen to play down the importance of the game, saying: "History tends to show that the one-dayers don't affect the Tests."
He pointed out that England had lost to West Indies last year in their one-day series but then won the Tests 4-0.
Ponting was buoyed by the fact that the first of the five Ashes Tests is being staged at Lord's.
"I said that coming here. I said it would be a big help for us. We have a great record here. I have never lost at the ground."