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England have left decisions open for the first Ashes Test by selecting spin bowler the young spinner in a twelve-player team alongside five pace bowlers

Wood is declared fit and seems set to play against Australia in Perth on the coming Friday, with the ultimate choice possibly between off-spinner Bashir and fast bowler the seamer

Pitch Conditions

If the visitors select an fast bowling unit - four main pacers along with multi-skilled player the captain - it would potentially be the fastest group of pacemen they have fielded in an Test against Australia in Australia

Recently WA wicket preparer Isaac McDonald commented to anticipate "pace and bounce" from the surface at the stadium, and it looks possible England will follow a long-standing plan of an pace-only strategy

However the English team have also noted a lack of moisture to the surface, bringing the spinner into the running

Spin Considerations

Throughout the limited timeframe of the ground - five previous Tests have been hosted here - Australian spin bowler Nathan Lyon is the most successful bowler with 29

The English management have backed the young spinner, 22, as their first-choice spinner for more than a year and in spring he was recognized as the most youthful English bowler to achieve 50 wickets in Tests

But he has been absent from a official match since taking the final wicket in a thrilling win over India in the third match at the famous ground in July

Recent Challenges

Bashir has been suffering from a broken finger and found it difficult in the sole practice game against the development squad, posting match figures of 2-151 from his bowling spell

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

The agreement at his county ended at the conclusion of the domestic season

Probable Team

Still, an England team including Wood, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, skipper Ben Stokes and Carse - each of whom are likely to hit high speeds - stays the probable result

The first Test starts at early morning GMT on the weekend, with instant commentary, expert analysis and live action clips accessible

Playing Group

England squad for series opener: Duckett, Crawley, Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Stokes (captain), Jamie Smith (wk), Gus Atkinson, Carse, Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, Shoaib Bashir

Team Background

While a various English Ashes victories at domestically and internationally have been constructed around fast bowling, they have not previously selected as numerous fast bowlers in the same team

The team that won at home in the memorable competition of 2005 Ashes featured Harmison, Jones and Andrew Flintoff

Illingworth's triumphant visitors to Australia in those years had Willis, Peter Lever and Snow, and the England team that triumphed in those seasons featured Statham and Tyson

Current Situation

In this instance - potentially the most exciting Ashes series in recent years - the visitors are hoping to overturn an awful record - they have failed to win a Test in Australia since 2011

Only five members of the sixteen-player group have experienced a Test in the host nation, but the bowler states that could benefit the English team

"It could be an advantage," he told the press

"We've seen a lot of players who have said they have had challenging periods down under

"For us, we are a very relaxed, very positive squad

"No scarring

"It's very exciting

"We all see it as a huge opportunity to achieve something remarkable"

Opposition News

The Australian net session on this week was temporarily interrupted by the risk of storms

The home side are expected to give a debut to opener Weatherald, with new fast bowler Doggett also coming in after health issues to captain Pat Cummins and fellow seamer Josh Hazlewood