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England have left decisions open for the initial Ashes match by naming off-spinner Bashir in a squad of twelve together with five pace bowlers

Wood has been passed fit and is expected to participate versus the Aussies in Perth on the coming Friday, with the last selection likely coming down to the young spinner and seamer Carse

Ground Situation

Should England choose an pace-only bowling lineup - four main pacers along with multi-skilled player the captain - it would arguably be the fastest group of seamers they have fielded in an Test against Australia in the host nation

On Wednesday WA wicket preparer Isaac McDonald said to look for "pace and bounce" from the pitch at the venue, and it appears probable England will adhere to a long-standing plan of an exclusively pace attack

However the English team have also spotted a arid quality to the surface, putting Bashir into consideration

Slow Bowling Factors

In the short history of Perth Stadium - five previous Tests have been hosted here - Australia spin bowler Lyon is the most successful bowler with twenty-nine

England have supported Bashir, 22, as their primary spin option for over twelve months and in spring he was recognized as the least experienced English bowler to achieve fifty wickets in Tests

However he has been absent from a competitive game after securing the final wicket in a exciting triumph over the Indian team in the third Test at the famous ground in July

Recent Challenges

He has been suffering from a hand problem and struggled in the single preparation match against England Lions, recording overall statistics of 2 for 151 from his bowling spell

This presents the possibility of the spinner competing in an Ashes match without being attached to a county

The agreement at his county concluded at the finish of the English season

Expected Selection

Still, an England team including Wood, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, captain Stokes and Brydon Carse - all of whom are capable of reaching 90mph - stays the probable result

The opening match starts at early morning GMT on the weekend, with instant commentary, expert analysis and live action clips available

Playing Group

Selected players for series opener: Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (skipper), Smith (wk), Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Wood, Jofra Archer, Shoaib Bashir

Past Experience

Although a several successful Ashes campaigns at in England and overseas have been constructed around fast bowling, they have never fielded as many express pace bowlers in the identical lineup

The lineup that triumphed at domestically in the celebrated contest of that year included Steve Harmison, Simon Jones and Andrew Flintoff

The captain's triumphant visitors to the host nation in those years had Bob Willis, Peter Lever and Snow, and the England team that won in that period contained Statham and Frank 'Typhoon' Tyson

Modern Context

On this occasion - potentially the most exciting Test series in modern times - the English team are hoping to change an awful record - they have not won a five-day game in Australia since 2011

Only five members of the 16-man squad have participated in a international Test in the host nation, but the bowler states that could benefit the English team

"This could represent an positive," he told media outlets

"There are a many cricketers who have stated they have had difficult experiences down under

"Regarding our team, we are a extremely composed, highly optimistic team

"No scarring

"It's exhilarating

"The entire team views it as a great possibility to do something special"

Host Team Situation

Australia's practice session on this week was briefly delayed by the risk of storms

The home side are likely to provide an opportunity to opener Weatherald, with new pace bowler Brendan Doggett also coming in following injuries to captain Pat Cummins and colleague Josh Hazlewood