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NEWS ICC Champions Trophy 2006>Ponting gives major credit to senior players for victory 02nd Nov 2006 14.51 IST By Agencies Australian captain Ricky Thomas Ponting expressed relief of getting over the semi-final hurdle and showered praise on senior players like Glenn McGrath for setting up the victory over New Zealand in the Champions Trophy. "Senior players in big tournaments are crucial. Big games are generally won by people who have been there and done it before," Ponting told reporters in Mohali on Wednesday after his team defeated New Zealand to book a berth in the final to be played in Mumbai on November 5.
Giving full credit to Vettori who put up a brilliant fight scoring 79, Ponting said the Aussies knew it was only a matter of time before the pressure in the form of increasing run rate started creeping on the Kiwis. "Though Jacob (Oram) and Daniel (Vettori) brought them into contest, we were sure the creeping run rate will force them to take risks at one stage or the other. I always felt quite comfortable that we will win. We knew New Zealand bat deep and we expected some kind of a fight," he said. Ponting praised Andrew Symonds for his knock of 58, saying he is a "class performer" and had helped the team to post a defendable total. Man-of-the-match Glenn Donald McGrath said the team was now heading for Mumbai and would like to see the wicket there first though he added it may not have pace, bounce and swing as the Mohali wicket. He also said that criticism from various quarters had not affected him at all and his main focus was always to improve his game. About opener Shane Watson, who failed to click for the Aussies today, Ponting said: "He was an important player. I have always backed him and will continue to do so. Pace and bounce can surprise you sometimes, but in the long term he (Watson) will be a good option for us." "He showed what he is capable of doing in the last match against India and we rate him highly", he added. Also View In-Depth Coverage: ICC Champions Trophy 2006 Team Page: Australia Team Page: New Zealand | LIVE CRICKET COVERAGE NEWS ~ Gilchrist has no plans to retire after World Cup ~ Ganguly's new batting approach may cost him sixer record ~ India 'squash the Orange' in World Cup warm-up game ~ Symonds gets a new hairdo for World Cup ~ Dhoni readies himself for stand-up act at World Cup (more in NEWS) FACE-TO-FACE ~ 500-mark a possibility in World Cup: Hayden ~ Minnows add charm to World Cup: Dravid (more in FACE-TO-FACE) COLUMNS ~ Will Sri Lanka replicate 1996 World Cup success? (more in COLUMNS) OFF-THE-FIELD ~ Ganguly again the darling of corporate world ~ Ganguly roped in as brand ambassador of Puma (more in OFF-THE-FIELD) PLAYERS Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble (more PLAYERS) TEAMS India, South Africa, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Australia, West Indies, Zimbabwe, England, New Zealand, Bangladesh, Kenya, Holland | 
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