Symonds declares he will play on

Andrew Symonds has confirmed he wants to fight back into the Australia side following his axing from the squad in Darwin last month. Symonds joined his Queensland team-mates at training in Brisbane on Tuesday and declared his intentions to return to top-level cricket.

"I'm going through the process of trying to improve and become not only a better cricketer but a better person," Symonds told AAP. "I'm looking forward to the challenge of taking up cricket again for my club, state and country, hopefully."

Symonds was unable to say when he would play again but he apologised to his team-mates, his family and cricket fans for his behaviour this year. Apart from a brief prepared statement a fortnight ago it was the first time Symonds had spoken publicly since he was sent home from Darwin, where he went fishing when he should have been at a team meeting.

That was the latest in a string of minor incidents that caused concerns in the Australia squad over his commitment to the team. There was speculation that he could permanently walk away from the national side and instead focus on his seven-figure IPL deal.

He was not considered for the upcoming Test tour of India but his latest words give Australia hope that he could be back in the national setup soon. Symonds said he had learned from his errors and wanted to improve his attitude off the field.

"I apologise for some of the things I've done over the last little bit," he said. "Hopefully I'll come out of it a better person and not make those mistakes in the future."