Ponting has been largely blamed for Australia's 2-1 Ashes series loss to England earlier this month with influential past players Ian Chappell and Dennis Lillee calling for Shane Warne to replace him as captain.

"One billion per cent (backing Ponting). Ricky Ponting is a fantastic little leader," Hayden told reporters in Brisbane.

"To be quite honest I'm sick and tired of even thinking about even reading anything about it. It's just ridiculous.

"He's won a World Cup, (and) he's won series away from home in Sri Lanka and India."

Warne, who arrived home Thursday, said he also stood fully behind Ponting.

"He is his own man and he's done a pretty good job," Warne said. "I'm sure he will become better and I'm sure we all will."

Amid calls that Warne was a better tactician that Ponting, Hayden said: "I don't think Shane Warne would be better.

"Four Tests and suddenly now you want change. I don't think so. I don't agree with that."

Warne said he agreed with Ponting that Australia had not lost its standing as the best team in the world because it had lost the Ashes Test series.

"There are two ways of looking at it, like a heavyweight title fight if Bangladesh beat Australia in a one-day game they'd be the best side in the world," Warne said.

"You can't really look at it like that. It's over a period of time in home and away games when you play against most countries, that's when you become the best in the world.

"You've got to, over a period of time, prove that. You can't just have one good series.

"I think everybody will acknowledge that we have been the best team for a long period of time. Hopefully, it's just a hiccup."

Hayden, who responded to pressure for his Test opening position by scoring 138 in the first innings of the fifth Test at The Oval, has been dropped for the three-match one-day series against the World XI, starting in Melbourne next week.

Hayden said he had been told by the national selectors they wanted to take a new approach for the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies.

The big left-hander said it would be "very unwise for them (the selectors) to shut the door" on him as a one-day player.