Symonds has chance to cement regular spot, says Ponting

PERTH, Dec 13 (Reuters) Australia all-rounder Andrew Symonds has a golden opportunity to cement a permanent place in the test side with a strong performance in the third Ashes test against England, according to his captain Ricky Ponting.

Symonds was called into the side for the match that starts tomorrow after the surprise retirement of Damien Martyn and the unavailability of first-choice all-rounder Shane Watson.

Watson is expected to be fit for the fourth test in Melbourne starting on December 26 but Ponting said Symonds could push his case with a strong showing in Perth.

''If Symo' does happen to do well then it will make it pretty tough for the selectors,'' Ponting said.

''I'm pretty confident in him actually. I've watched him pretty closely over the last few days and he's extremely excited to be back amongst this group.'' Symonds has been an automatic selection in Australia's one-day team since his destructive displays with the bat at the 2003 World Cup in South Africa.

He is also a handy bowler, who offers both medium pace or off-spin, but has failed to carry his limited-overs form into the test arena, averaging just 19 with the bat and 45 with the ball in 10 appearances.

GREAT TALENT But Ponting, a long-time admirer of Symonds, said he was confident the dreadlocked Queenslander would realise his true potential in the test arena.

''Right now he feels better about his game than he probably ever has before,'' he said.

''That's exciting for us. We all know what a great talent he is and he probably hasn't shown it to his capacity at test level yet but we hope over the next few days we will see some of that.'' Symonds is one of Australia's most passionate players and his excitement at being recalled was evident this week when he turned up to training wearing his baggy green cap.

Ponting said the 31-year-old's enthusiasm was infectious but he had to be careful not to let his emotions get the better of him because his desperation to succeed has unwittingly added to the pressure on him.

''What he brings to the team is a bit of life and a bit of energy and we want him to have that around the group but he does have to keep his emotions in check,'' Ponting said.

''We want him to be the same person he his because he's fantastic to have around the team and we all know what a player he can be.

''Once he gets out there in the middle, probably when he's batting especially there's no doubt he's going to be nervous.

''He's got to keep that all in check when he's out there.

It's a learning process for all of us but Symo should be able to handle it better than he has done in the past.'' REUTERS SAM BST1533