Punter working hard

Australian captain Ricky Ponting has turned to high-tech plasma screen gadgetry in a private batting tutorial to overcome the slump in his form.

Ponting, who failed to deliver in last summer's one-day series and subsequently during his stint with the Indian Premier League, set about fixing his technique at the Allan Border Field in Brisbane.

A plasma screen television was hauled into the practice net next to Ponting as he was videotaped facing deliveries from a bowling machine. The video footage was fed through the plasma screen, on a five-second delay, enabling Ponting to play a stroke and then watch it replayed immediately on TV.

"It's the first time I've used that, it is the best little coaching session you can have," Ponting was quoted as saying by the local media.