Shoaib Bashir Earns Unexpected Inclusion in English Test Series Team
England have opted for a 12-man selection just two days ahead of the first Ashes Test, with Shoaib Bashir earning a surprise place.
Bashir's inclusion indicates that the tourists will wait until the morning of the initial match to decide whether the venue pitch favor four seamers or the addition of a spinner.
Both pace bowlers are included in the selected squad, indicating there are no concerns about either fast bowler's fitness.
The other seamers complete the attack, with the latter most likely to miss out if the spinner makes the final team.
Ground Conditions Lean Toward Seamers
The England coach had been expected to choose an all-seam attack on a ground that has hosted five past matches.
In those games, 134 wickets have fallen to seamers, with only a small number to spin.
Of those spin dismissals, Australia’s Nathan Lyon has claimed 29, while all visiting spinners combined have only eight.
At a venue known for its pace and bounce, and whose groundsman, Isaac McDonald, pledged that these characteristics are “permanent and not going to change,” a team loaded with fast bowlers is still the probable decision.
Alternative Choices Weighed
Previously there was speculation that the all-rounder could be parachuted into the side to offer some spin while also bolstering the lower order.
But the coach has opted to keep faith with Bashir, having said earlier this year that he would be his preferred spinner for the Ashes.
Earlier, Lyon commented on the English spinner as “OK,” saying that “in my eyes, Jack Leach is still the English best spinner.”
“This is a huge responsibility, and it can be a massive challenge for people who haven’t done it in the past in Australian pitches,” he said of slow bowling in Australian Tests.
“I’m not going to reveal my strategies so they perform and excel out here.”
English 12-man Squad for First Ashes Test
- The Captain
- Jofra Archer
- Gus Atkinson
- The Spinner
- The Batsman
- Brydon Carse
- Zak Crawley
- Ben Duckett
- Ollie Pope
- The Veteran
- The Wicketkeeper
- The Speedster
