Bangalore, Oct.14 : Australian cricket captain Ricky Ponting has predicted a bright future in Test cricket for Bangalore debutant Cameron White.

In purely statistical terms, White's first Test (six and 18no with the bat, 1-88 from 31 overs with the ball) was not one for the archives, but he demonstrated an ability to hold his own against Indian batsmen, something that delighted Ponting .

"He's come along in leaps and bounds with his bowling in this game, I think he's probably exceeded my expectations with what he's done. From what I've seen in this game it would appear that Cam's got a lot more confidence in his bowling. To experience what he's experienced, bowling against some world-class players on foreign soil, will do him the world of good. He could be a really good player for us in years to come," Fox Sports quoted Ponting, as saying.

"If you look at the style he bowls it's probably reasonably similar to the way Kumble bowls, not a lot of sidespin, a lot of overspin, pretty much stump to stump and at a slightly quicker pace than normal legspinners bowl, and I'm not sure if Kumble's ever been called 'not an attacking spinner'," Ponting said.

"You don't want a spinner leaking runs all the time, so if he can get the ball in the right area with a bit of variation from the wicket, plus a few different variations of his own, then he's doing a good job for the team," the Australian captain said.

White too was happy with his performance in his first Test.

"It's good to have got it out of the road. I'm happy with the way I bowled. I'm much better when I'm relaxed, (but) I'm not saying I'm not going to be not nervous next time either. I really enjoyed it once I got into my work, after the first few overs, I found a bit of rhythm which is something I haven't done for a while. I enjoyed bowling and enjoyed being in the contest and in the game the whole match," White said.

ANI