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England have kept their options open for the series opener by naming spin bowler Bashir in a squad of twelve alongside five pace bowlers

The fast bowler has been passed fit and seems set to play versus the Aussies in Perth Stadium on Friday, with the ultimate choice likely between off-spinner Bashir and seamer the seamer

Ground Situation

If England opt for an pace-only bowling lineup - four main pacers along with all-rounder Stokes - it would potentially be the most rapid assembly of seamers they have deployed in an Ashes Test in the host nation

Recently Western Australia pitch curator McDonald commented to expect "speed and bounce" from the pitch at the venue, and it looks possible the English will adhere to a traditional approach of an exclusively pace attack

Yet the tourists have also spotted a arid quality to the wicket, putting the spinner into consideration

Slow Bowling Factors

During the brief existence of this venue - five prior matches have been played here - Australian spin bowler the experienced spinner is the top wicket-taker with twenty-nine

The team have supported Bashir, twenty-two, as their first-choice spinner for over twelve months and in recent months he achieved the youngest England bowler to achieve half-century of wickets in Tests

But he has missed a official match since claiming the final wicket in a thrilling win over India in the final Test at Lord's in July

Recent Challenges

Bashir has been out with a finger injury and struggled in the single preparation match against the development squad, returning combined figures of two wickets for 151 runs from his bowling spell

It also raises the possibility of him participating in an Test against Australia without being affiliated with a first-class side

The agreement at Somerset concluded at the finish of the English season

Likely Lineup

Still, an English side containing Wood, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, captain Ben Stokes and Brydon Carse - all of whom are capable of reaching high speeds - stays the expected conclusion

The first Test commences at 2:20 AM GMT on Friday, with real-time updates, expert analysis and in-play highlights accessible

England Squad

England squad for series opener: Duckett, Zak Crawley, Pope, Root, Brook, Stokes (skipper), Smith (gloveman), Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Wood, Archer, Bashir

Historical Context

While a number of successful Ashes campaigns at home and abroad have been constructed around fast bowling, they have not previously selected as multiple quick bowlers in the equivalent side

The team that succeeded at in England in the celebrated contest of that year featured Harmison, Simon Jones and Andrew Flintoff

Illingworth's successful touring team to Australia in that era had Willis, Lever and Snow, and the England team that won in those seasons contained Brian Statham and Tyson

Modern Context

In this instance - one of the most eagerly anticipated England-Australia contests in modern times - England are aiming to overturn an difficult past - they have failed to win a five-day game in Australia since over a decade ago

Merely five individuals of the sixteen-player group have participated in a Test match in Australia, but Atkinson comments that could benefit the English team

"It could be an benefit," he explained to the press

"There are a lot of players who have said they have had challenging periods here in Australia

"For us, we are a quite calm, extremely confident team

"No negative experiences

"It's very exciting

"We all see it as a great possibility to create history"

Opposition News

Australia's practice session on Wednesday was temporarily interrupted by the possibility of bad weather

The home side are expected to give a debut to batsman Weatherald, with yet to debut pace bowler Doggett also being included due to health issues to captain Pat Cummins and fellow seamer Josh Hazlewood