The English Cricket Board unveiled the first 12 men it will be sending up against home team the Australians in Perth on Friday, and it’s clear the tourists are aiming to win with fast bowling and a quick offence.
Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse, and Gus Atkinson have all been named, as has Mark Wood, who was originally going to be left out over a hamstring scare he picked up late last week. All-rounder Ben Stokes rounds out the attack.
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There is a full-time spinner in the squad in Shoaib Bashir, but mail from England’s camp makes it sound more likely the travelling team walk out onto Optus Stadium with him as 12th man. That would mean that hypothetical pace-heavy England lineup will only have Joe Root and his part-time spin if they want to change things mid-innings in Perth.
England squad for the first Test
- Jofra Archer
- Gus Atkinson
- Shoaib Bashir
- Harry Brook
- Brydon Carse
- Zak Crawley
- Ben Duckett
- Ollie Pope
- Joe Root
- Ben Stokes (c)
- Jamie Smith (wk)
- Mark Wood
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It’s no great shock that England has chosen pace, though, with Perth’s wickets often fast and bouncy; a fact Optus Stadium head curator Isaac McDonald has already confirmed will be the case again. “That’s not going to change anytime soon,” McDonald said on pace and bounce being “a mainstay” for the western pitch in its famed history.
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There’s some notable inexperience Australia’s batters will try to exploit: Recovering Wood is the only member of the bowlers unit in England’s squad to have played a Test in Australia. Archer is also playing his first Ashes Test in six years.
For batting, Ollie Pope has much to prove after averaging 35.36 in his 61 Tests thus far.
And eyes will be on Joe Root and the fact that he has yet to score a century against the Aussies Down Under.
