Don’t care if David Warner gets another duck, he’ll play in the summer against Pakistan, says Ricky Ponting

There are just two days to go until the end of yet another riveting Ashes showdown. The Aussies will return home with the urn, but whether they will have the series trophy along with them is yet to be seen. However, their former captain Ponting, who has been a sounding board for coach Justin Langer in recent months, is already looking ahead to the summer of cricket that will follow soon.

"Warner's going to be a lock. I don't care if he gets another duck in the second innings of this Test match (at the Oval), he's going to be a lock for the Australian summer. Marnus is an absolute lock. Smith's a lock," Ponting told cricket.com.au.

"(There are) still question marks around the guys in the middle, (Matthew) Wade and (Travis) Head. (Opener Marcus) Harris has looked tested against good quality fast bowling in this series," he said.

Throughout the series, no one other than Smith or Labuschagne has looked a solid bet. Cameron Bancroft failed to convert his long stays into any substantial scores, while Usman Khawaja has looked fluent only to throw his wicket away in the 40s. Their lack of form could open the door to Joe Burns and Kurtis Patterson, who were controversially left out of the squad for England despite making centuries in their last home Test against Sri Lanka.

Another option is young wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey, although it is unlikely that he will get a look in while Tim Paine continues as captain, at least for the series against Pakistan and New Zealand. Ponting also suggested young prospect Will Pucovski, the 21-year-old who smashed a superb 243 for Victoria last season. Although he was picked for the two Tests against Sri Lanka, he was overlooked for the first one in Brisbane and again missed out on selection for the second in Canberra before being released to deal with mental health issues.

"With so many gaps like that, I'd like to see somebody like Pucovski get an opportunity," he added. Everyone's talked about him for a long time. A couple of years before the next Ashes series you want to try and blood someone in that No.6 role and he'd be the obvious candidate,” Ponting added.