England have named a 12-man squad for the first Ashes Test, with off-spinner Shoaib Bashir a surprise inclusion. The 22-year-old's selection suggests the tourists will wait until the morning of the match to decide whether conditions at Perth Stadium favour four seamers or the addition of a spin bowler.
Jofra Archer and Mark Wood are both in the squad, indicating no doubts about their fitness. Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse complete the bowling group, with Carse most likely to miss out should Bashir make the starting XI. England coach Brendon McCullum had been expected to opt for an all-seam attack on a ground known for pace and bounce.
Perth Stadium has hosted five previous Tests, in which 134 wickets have fallen to pace bowling and only 40 to spin. Of those 40 spin wickets, Australia's Nathan Lyon has taken 29, while all visiting spinners combined have taken just eight. Curator Isaac McDonald has pledged that pace and bounce are 'a mainstay and not going to change'.
There had been speculation that Will Jacks could provide spin and bolster the lower order, but McCullum has kept faith with Bashir, having earlier said he would be his first-choice spinner for the Ashes. In July, Lyon described Bashir as 'OK', adding that 'in my eyes, Jack Leach is still England's best spinner'.
