SYDNEY, May 10: Australia’s cricketers flew out of Sydney on Saturday bracing themselves for a tough tour of the West Indies.

The Australians are overwhelming favourites to win the three Tests and five One-day Internationals but captain Ricky Ponting said the players were not expecting an easy time.

“I think they are starting to turn things around there a little bit better at the moment,” Ponting told reporters.

“Their bowling attack probably in particular is definitely a lot stronger than the last time we played them in Test cricket. As always, they will pose a bit of a threat in their home conditions,” he added.

To overcome his batting form slump, Ponting turned to high-tech plasma screen technology in Brisbane ahead of the West Indies tour.

An enormous plasma screen TV was hauled into practice net at Brisbane’s Allan Border Field next to Ponting, as he was videotaped facing deliveries from a bowling machine.

Video footage was fed through the plasma screen, on a five-second delay, enabling him to play a stroke and then watch it replayed immediately on TV.

Ponting claimed he is not overly worried by his form slump, most recently scoring just 39 runs in IPL at a mere average of 9.75, but feels funky plasma session is a priceless tool, which can help him back to his devastating best.

The West Indies series poses a new challenge for the Australians, who will be without Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Adam Gilchrist and Justin Langer who have all retired in the last 18 months.

Vice-captain Michael Clarke has opted to miss the start of the tour to remain in Australia with his fiancee Lara Bingle, while her father is ill.

Meanwhile, still in disbelief over how Harbhajan Singh easily got away with charges of racially abusing Andrew Symonds as a “monkey”, Ponting urged public to make their judgement on the world’s worst-behaved cricketer, after turbanator’s attack on Indian team-mate Shanthakumaran Sreesanth.

“The [slapping] incident was him dealing with a guy that he has probably played 20 Tests with,” Ponting told the Herald Sun. “After this latest issue in India, I think people should be making their own judgements about Harbhajan. He has again done something wrong.”

Harbhajan is facing a potential life ban from BCCI’s disciplinary committee.

Ponting insisted he wanted to look forward from here on, but was still not able to digest the fact that how the BCCI had used its power to clear Harbhajan from racial charges.

Harbhajan was initially suspended for three Tests. But after the Indian board threatened to boycott their team’s tour, he was cleared and received 50 per cent match-fee fine on a lesser charge.—Agencies