On-field exchanges look worse from sidelines: Ponting

The match, which started with a heated exchanges between Gautam Gambhir, Shane Watson and Simon Katich, also saw Mitchell Johnson irking VVS Laxman on the fifth and final day.

Ponting defended Johnson, saying, 8220;There was no real malice from anything Mitchell had to say.

8220;It was about some of the comments that VVS had made in the newspapers, to tell the truth. That was all he was talking about. The umpires spoke to me and said it happened three times in the over, I think, and it wasn8217;t acceptable. So I spoke to Mitchell at the break and that was it.8221;

Despite the regular incidents, Ponting said they were not a result of Australia8217;s frustration at the inability to break through India.

8220;I8217;d like to think those things aren8217;t getting to us on the field,8221; he said. 8220;We8217;ve got a pretty clear job to do.8221;