Ponting chooses rest over county cricket

Melbourne, March 23 (IANS) Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has opted to rest after a demanding home season and will not be playing county cricket in England.

Ponting will enjoy a five-month break after the Test series in the West Indies next month and he plans to spend the free time with family besides preparing for the home series against South Africa in November.

"It (county cricket) doesn't really fit into what I am looking at doing," said Ponting, who was linked to be part of Somerset for the upcoming season.

"I am looking forward to having a bit more time pre-season with the Tasmanian Tigers this year back in Hobart and spending a bit of time with the family so county cricket is probably out of the question.

"I have got to look at what my best preparation is, post the West Indies, and that will probably be to have a couple of months off."

The 37-year-old, who is not expected to play in ODIs after being dropped from the side, said preparations for series against New Zealand and India had taken a toll on him.

"It has been a hard 12 months for me personally and around my cricket. With things not going as smoothly as I wanted at the start of the year, I had to train harder and work harder on my game and think more about my game than ever before. It has taken its toll a little bit, so I need to have a chance to refresh and recharge my batteries and get a solid pre-season under my belt before the Australian summer," he said.