Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has questioned selectors for suggesting they'd seek David Warner's opinion on who will join him at the top of the order, Joe Burns or Will Pucovski.
Ponting backed Burns to beat the 22-year-old to selection in the first Test of the summer despite Pucovski's dominance in the Sheffield Shield and Burns' struggles.
Yet the former Australian skipper said he didn't understand why coach Justin Langer and chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns told the media they would consult Warner about who he felt comfortable opening with.
"I'm surprised they're even asking him, to be honest," Ponting told cricket.com.au.
"I know what they're talking about because they have done well when they've played together. It's an interesting thing for a selector to come out and say.
"At the end of the day, they've just got to pick who they think the best player is. And if they think their best player and best option is Joe Burns, then stick with him. If they think Pucovski is a better player here and now, they should go with him."
Ponting was refereeing to comments made by Hohns following the announcement of Australia's 17-man squad.
"Of course, we talk to David," Hohns said.
"He is a very senior player. He is very experienced and it's important that he is comfortable too providing we are, of course, with the person he opens with.
"It goes a long way in forming an opening partnership – you have to be comfortable with your partner. We certainly do consult players on such issues."
While Ponting believes Pucovski's time will inevitably come when a spot opens up in the order, the Australian great emphasised Burns' impact on the side in their recent games.
The right-hander was the third highest run-scorer in an Australian team that won all five of its Tests.
"Burns hasn't done much wrong. If you go back to last summer, he played really well in the first Test in Brisbane and I remember saying then to lock him in and give him a good go at it for a while.
"We read a lot into what's happened in the first few rounds of Shield cricket, and because they haven't played a Test match for so long, a lot people are forgetting what happened last summer.
"The boys have been on a roll with their performances in Test cricket and I always say you don't want to be making too many changes if you don't need to."
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