Graeme Swann denies slamming England dressing room door on his way out

In comments to English reporters Swann said,“some people playing the game at the minute have no idea how far up their own backsides they are. It will bite them on the arse one day and when it does I hope they look back and are embarrassed about how they carry on.”

Swann has since said he was not referring to any current members of the England team.

Former England cricketers Michael Vaughan and Derek Pringle,now both working in the media,were among those who questioned what they saw as Swann’s decision to publicly raise reservations about his teammates.

On Twitter,former England captain Vaughan said “this tour for England was already a disaster…. Now it’s a bloody joke. “As a respected senior player in the dressing room Swannyg66 why didn’t you sort players out who got too big for themselves?”

‘Pringle making up stuff’

Swann also used Twitter to respond,saying his comments were not directed at current England players. “Don’t jump to conclusions Vaughney,”he said. “I wasn’t talking about the England dressing room or anyone in it. You too bbc.”

Swann directly attacked Pringle,saying “just because Derek Pringle writes something I find it astonishing that people buy into it?! Making stuff up sells papers I suppose,” he tweeted.

Pringle replied “Swann could have made it clear that he was not talking about England but didn’t.”

Swann’s use of the term “people playing the game at the minute” led to speculation that his comments related to current England players.

Former Australian leg spinner Shane Warne quickly placed himself in Swann’s corner,suggesting he had made the comments in the hope of firing up an England team facing a 5-0 series defeat. “It’s an emotional time for Graeme,” Warne said. “And hopefully that was a way to lift the guys and say “come on,pull your heads out and let’s finish the tour on a high’.”

Spinner Monty Panesar,who will take Swann’s place in the England lineup for the Boxing Day test,defended his former teammate. “We know Swanny,we know where his heart is — he’s right behind us and we’re right behind him,” Panesar said.

England draft spinners

Melbourne: Leg-spinner Scott Borthwick and off-spinner James Tredwell have been added to the England test squad for the remainder of the Ashes series following Graeme Swann’s surprise retirement,the country’s cricket board said on Monday. Durham leg-spinner Borthwick,23,is expected to arrive in Melbourne on Monday and will be available for selection for the Boxing Day test starting on Thursday,the England and Wales Cricket Board said in a statement. The 31-year-old Tredwell,who played his only test for England in March 2010 against Bangladesh,will join the squad during the fourth Test and will be available for selection for the fifth and final match in Sydney,starting on Jan. 3. Left-arm spinner Monty Panesar is the other slow bowler in England’s Ashes squad.

Aus attack best: McDermott

MELBOURNE: Bowling coach Craig McDermott expects Australia to take an unchanged attack into the fourth Ashes cricket test against England,starting at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Thursday. Fast bowler Ryan Harris has a sore knee but McDermott is confident he will be fit to take his place beside fellow quicks Mitchell Johnson and Peter Siddle and off-spinner Nathan Lyon. McDermott calls the lineup,which has bowled Australia to a 3-0 series lead,the best in world cricket.

“They’ve all performed as a unit fantastically well,” he said. “We have the best attack in the world at the moment.”

McDermott said Harris had some pain in his knee but was likely to play. “I wouldn’t say there’s any doubt,he’s just sore,” he said.

McDermott refused to be drawn on the sudden retirement of England off-spinner Graeme Swann. “That’s their problem,I suppose,” he said. “I’m more concerned about how our bowlers are preparing come Boxing Day.”

Were remarks a dig at Pietersen?

MELBOURNE: Graeme Swann’s ambiguous parting shot set abuzz a wave of media speculation in England and Australia. The newspapers had a field day guessing the subject of Swann’s jibe. Most papers were of the view that the former England off-spinner was referring to teammate Kevin Pietersen,with whom he does not have the best of relationships. Swann had been critical of Pietersen in his autobiography ‘The Breaks Are Off’,published two years ago. In the book he doubted Pietersen’s credentials as a captain and was reserved during the text scandal that almost swallowed the batsman’s England career. Swann though,refuted the claims that he was referring to any England players and some papers even threw in the name of David Warner as his intended target.

Agencies