Clark stands by Ponting

Stuart Clark claims Ricky Ponting, only the second man to lose the Ashes twice in England, is the "best man" for the job

Australia seamer Stuart Clark has labelled talk of sacking Ricky Ponting as captain as “ludicrous” despite the Ashes defeat to England.

Clark, wicketkeeper Brad Haddin and opener Simon Katich returned to Sydney today along with Ponting, who has come in for much criticism after becoming only the second Australia skipper to lose the Ashes twice in England.

Ponting's critics have attacked his on-field tactics and team selections during the 2-1 series loss, calling for vice-captain Michael Clarke to assume the post.

But a loyal Clark insisted: “Ricky Ponting has got my full support and I think he's the best man to be captain. I think it's ludicrous that anyone say any other.”

Katich, one of Australia's best performers during the Ashes with 341 runs at an average of 42, claimed all the players must take responsibility for the defeat.

“There were 11 of us out there that had an opportunity to win the Ashes - you can't just blame it on one person," he said.

“We had our chances throughout the whole five Tests. Unfortunately when those chances came around - whether it was Cardiff, Lord's, the Oval - we didn't grab them, so everyone put their hands up for that.

“The guys that got given the opportunity to play in the Tests, we didn't make the most of those opportunities to win us the Ashes, so we're the ones that have a direct outcome on the result.

“You can always look for plenty of excuses, but the bottom line is when we're out there when the pressure was on, we didn't take our chances.”