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The English side has left decisions open for the first Ashes Test by selecting off-spinner Bashir in a 12-man squad together with five seamers

Wood has been passed fit and seems set to play versus the Aussies in Western Australia on the weekend, with the final decision possibly involving spinner Bashir and seamer Brydon Carse

Pitch Conditions

If the visitors select an pace-only bowling lineup - four dedicated bowlers plus multi-skilled player Ben Stokes - it would arguably be the fastest group of bowlers they have deployed in an Ashes match in this country

On Wednesday Western Australia groundsman the curator said to anticipate "pace and bounce" from the wicket at the stadium, and it appears probable the tourists will stick to a established strategy of an fast bowling focus

Yet the visitors have also spotted a arid quality to the wicket, bringing the spinner into consideration

Spinning Options

Throughout the limited timeframe of Perth Stadium - five previous Tests have been staged here - Australian spin bowler the experienced spinner is the leading wicket-taker with 29

England have supported the young spinner, twenty-two, as their main slow bowler for since last year and in May he became the least experienced English bowler to reach fifty wickets in international Tests

However he has been absent from a first-class game after claiming the final wicket in a thrilling win over the Indian team in the final Test at Lord's in July

Current Concerns

He has been suffering from a hand problem and had challenges in the sole practice game against England Lions, posting overall statistics of two wickets for 151 runs from 24 overs

This creates the scenario of him participating in an Ashes match without being affiliated with a county

His contract at his county concluded at the finish of the English season

Probable Team

Still, an English side featuring Wood, Jofra Archer, Atkinson, skipper Ben Stokes and Carse - all of whom are capable of reaching 90mph - stays the most likely outcome

The first Test commences at early morning GMT on Friday, with real-time updates, expert analysis and live action clips available

Team Selection

Team lineup for first Ashes Test: Ben Duckett, Crawley, Pope, Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (captain), Smith (gloveman), Gus Atkinson, Carse, Wood, Archer, Shoaib Bashir

Team Background

Even though a several English Ashes victories at domestically and internationally have been founded on quick bowling, they have not previously selected as many express pace bowlers in the identical lineup

The team that triumphed at home in the celebrated contest of that year included Steve Harmison, Jones and Flintoff

Illingworth's successful touring team to Australia in that era had Willis, Lever and Snow, and the English side that won in those seasons featured Statham and Tyson

Modern Context

On this occasion - potentially the most exciting Ashes series in recent years - the English team are looking to overturn an awful record - they have not won a Test in the host country since over a decade ago

Only five members of the extended squad have participated in a Test in Australia, but Atkinson says that could benefit the English team

"This could represent an positive," he told the press

"There have been a lot of players who have mentioned they have had difficult experiences down under

"For us, we are a extremely composed, extremely confident group

"No bad memories

"It's exhilarating

"We all see it as a great possibility to do something special"

Opposition News

The Australian net session on recently was temporarily interrupted by the threat of lightning

Australia are probably going to provide an opportunity to batsman Jack Weatherald, with new fast bowler Brendan Doggett also being included after fitness concerns to captain Pat Cummins and teammate Josh Hazlewood