Australia coach Mickey Arthur concedes that Ricky Ponting desperately needs a breather, but says he can't afford to give him a break just yet.

Ponting has featured in all 10 Tests against Sri Lanka, New Zealand, South Africa and India over the past six months as well as the 12 ODIs against the same nations.

While his batting in the longer format has been impressive over the last few weeks, the same cannot be said of his form in the limited-overs game. He is a man under pressure after scoring two, one, six and two in the four Commonwealth Bank Series games to date.

Arthur, though, defended the continued selection of the 37-year-old, saying they need him in the side with captain Michael Clarke unavailable due to injury.

"If I have to be totally honest Ricky is a little bit jaded, like a couple of our Test players that have played all summer," Arthur told reporters in Brisbane.

"But that is the treadmill of international cricket and they have to find a way to make their performances count and have an impact on the team."

Arthur added: "Every cricketer's currency is performance, that's what gets you into the Australian team," he said.

"A character like Ricky Ponting is someone you want around the team all the time because he's so inspirational, he's still our fittest player and hardest trainer and he trains with the most intensity, he's a fantastic example to every guy who comes into this team.

"Ricky is a class act, there is no way you can write off a champion like Ricky Ponting.

"He faced those same issues around the first couple of Test matches and he came through the Test series, had a great series against India and I hope he turns it around tomorrow."