Ponting scored a century in the Edgbaston Test

"We are totally confident in the security precautions taken on our behalf," Ponting said in a statement.

"We were very comfortable with the security arrangements that were in place during the recent Ashes tour."

The Sunday Times carried claims an al-Qaeda cell was initially ordered to kill both teams at Edgbaston.

Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland said on Monday: "At no stage then or since was there any specific issue relating to the Australian or England teams raised with us."

The England and Wales Cricket Board had "absolutely no knowledge of the threat described in the Sunday Times", a spokesman told BBC Sport.

The 7 July attacks on the London transport network, which killed 52 people, took place as the Ashes rivals prepared to begin a one-day game in Leeds.

As the first Test began at Lord's in north London on 21 July, there was a second attempt to bomb Underground trains.

The second Test at Edgbaston, Birmingham followed on 4 August.

The touring team met to discuss the threat to their safety and Ponting expressed concerns writing in his Ashes Tour Diary, published after the series finished.

Ponting wrote: "I know quite a few players feel there is an element of inconsistency about our decision to continue with the tour and I agree with that.

"If we were in, say, Pakistan or Sri Lanka and something like this had happened, I am sure we would have been on the first plane out."