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England have maintained flexibility for the series opener by naming slow bowler Bashir in a squad of twelve combined with five pace bowlers

The fast bowler has recovered and is expected to participate versus the Aussies in Perth Stadium on the coming Friday, with the ultimate choice possibly coming down to spinner Bashir and fast bowler Brydon Carse

Ground Situation

If England opt for an all-pace attack - four dedicated bowlers along with all-rounder Stokes - it would potentially be the fastest group of bowlers they have deployed in an Ashes Test in this country

Earlier this week Western Australia groundsman the curator said to look for "pace and bounce" from the wicket at Perth Stadium, and it appears probable England will adhere to a long-standing plan of an fast bowling focus

But the visitors have also noted a arid quality to the surface, placing the off-spinner into consideration

Slow Bowling Factors

In the short history of this venue - five prior matches have been played here - Australian spin bowler Lyon is the most successful bowler with 29 dismissals

The team have favored Shoaib, twenty-two, as their main slow bowler for over twelve months and in spring he achieved the least experienced English bowler to reach 50 wickets in international Tests

However he has not played a first-class game after securing the last dismissal in a exciting triumph over India in the third match at the famous ground in July

Recent Challenges

He has been out with a broken finger and found it difficult in the single preparation match against the Lions, recording combined figures of 2-151 from twenty-four overs

This presents the possibility of him playing in an Ashes Test without being contracted with a domestic team

The agreement at Somerset concluded at the conclusion of the domestic season

Likely Lineup

Nevertheless, an English side featuring Wood, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, skipper Stokes and Carse - every one of them are able to achieve 90mph - stays the most likely outcome

The first Test begins at 02:20 GMT on the weekend, with instant commentary, Test Match Special commentary and live action clips available

Playing Group

Selected players for series opener: Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Root, Brook, Stokes (captain), Jamie Smith (gloveman), Gus Atkinson, Carse, Mark Wood, Archer, Shoaib Bashir

Team Background

Even though a various successful Ashes campaigns 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 in England in the celebrated contest of 2005 Ashes included Steve Harmison, Jones and Andrew Flintoff

The captain's winning English side to Australia in that era had Bob Willis, Peter Lever and Snow, and the visiting team that triumphed in 1954-55 featured Brian Statham and Frank 'Typhoon' Tyson

Present Circumstances

In this instance - one of the most eagerly anticipated England-Australia contests in recent memory - England are looking to reverse an awful record - they have failed to win a Test match in the host country since over a decade ago

Merely five individuals of the extended squad have experienced a Test match in the host nation, but Atkinson says that could work in England's favour

"This could represent an advantage," he mentioned to the press

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

"In our case, we are a very relaxed, highly optimistic group

"No scarring

"It's very exciting

"The entire team views it as a huge opportunity to create history"

Host Team Situation

Australia's net session on this week was briefly delayed by the possibility of bad weather

Australia are likely to provide an opportunity to opener Weatherald, with yet to debut pace bowler Brendan Doggett also joining after health issues to captain Cummins and fellow seamer Hazlewood