London, July 4 (ANI): England off-spinner Graeme Swann, who has emerged as the leading Test wicket-taker in the world in 2009 with 26 victims, says that he has learnt from his errors, but has lost the ability to smile along the way.

In an interview with The Sun, Swann said he was looking forward to his Ashes debut in England, and added that when he was doing the drinks for the squad in 2005, the atmosphere gave him the goose bumps.

"We weren't meant to think or talk about the Ashes until recently but I've been like a kid in December opening each window in his advent calendar. I can't wait for the big day. ne of the reasons we're so confident of doing well is the team spirit - the England dressing room is my kind of place because of all the banter flying around. We enjoy other's company and there are no cliques," Swann told The Sun. "At the age of 20, I was chosen for England's tour of South Africa in 1999-2000, the one over-riding memory I have of that tour is frustration. I was there for three months, played only a couple of games, and wasn't that close to anyone in the side because I didn't know them," said Swann.

"The tour taught me I wasn't good enough, too immature and miles away from being an international player. After that, I disappeared from the England scene and some periods were so low that I thought about giving up," he said.

"Moving from Northants to Notts was the turning point. I made the decision to try to improve my game and get back into the England set-up," he added. (ANI)