With the series level at 1-1, both England and Australia will fight it out in the final Test match of the Ashes series at The Oval which will start from next week and which will decide the winner of the Ashes trophy. Ricky Ponting had said in a media conference that the England team was way too focussed on the injury of Andrew Flintoff who is playing his last Test series. According to Ponting, England’s middle order is very brittle and needs someone who can stay at the crease to face the Australian pace battery in order to provide strength and stability in the middle order.

After losing the first Test match, it was Australia that received flak, but now it seems England is on the back foot. In his daily column, Ponting wrote, “It is very hard for us not to notice these distractions. Admittedly these side issues do not make winning the Oval Test any easier for us, but it is fair to say the speculation makes it harder for England. Up until the last couple of days we were the story. Following the defeat at Lord's the questions were all about our team and how on earth we could win the Ashes. That all seems to have changed. It's all proof to me that two weeks can be an awfully long time in cricket. For the first time since the end of the Cardiff Test talk and attention has shifted away from us."

Ponting also appreciated all-rounder Flintoff for his superb display throughout the series; he described him as the crowdpuller for England’s team - noting that he attracted cricket enthusiasts  wherever he played.