Melboune, Jan 5 (ANI): Pakistan has revealed how the pre-Test speech by Australian skipper Ricky Ponting at a Prime Minister’s lunch reception for both teams, had prepared their batsmen for a nightmare Sydney Cricket Ground pitch.

At the function at Kirribilli House, Ponting spoke about the pitch and may have given away state cricket secrets as he inadvertently helped to formulate Pakistan’s batting plan.

Pakistani batsmen listened intently and if any had been expecting a traditional spin-friendly SCG pitch, they certainly walked away with different ideas, the Daily Telegraph reports.

“Ricky in the Prime Minister’s place, when he made a speech he spoke about the wicket, (he said) it was going to be tough for the batsmen,” Pakistani opener Salman Butt said on Monday.

“So even before the game started batsman had it in their mind (how tough the pitch would be). There was a sense it was going to be tough so you make up your mind what it is going to be like,” he said.

Butt, who played in the Sydney Test of 2005, had been pre-warned about what to expect after the Kirribilli capers.

“There is not one percent of similarity in the wicket compared to the one I last played on here. Sydney historically is known for spin but this time it has been a paradise for the seam bowlers,” he said. (ANI)