England have opted to keep their options open just 48 hours before the Ashes begin, announcing a 12-player group for the opening Test that includes a surprise name: Shoaib Bashir.
The inclusion of the 22-year-old off-spinner suggests the touring side will wait until the morning of the match to decide whether Perth Stadium’s conditions call for four quick bowlers or a specialist spinner.
Both Jofra Archer and Mark Wood appear in the squad, confirming that the management has no lingering concerns about the fitness of either fast bowler. Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse round out the pace options, with Carse the most likely to step aside if Bashir is chosen for the final XI.
England head coach Brendon McCullum had widely been expected to rely solely on seamers. The Perth venue has hosted five Test matches—two against India and one each against Pakistan, New Zealand and the West Indies—in which fast bowlers have taken 134 wickets compared with just 40 for spinners.
Of those 40 wickets, Australia’s Nathan Lyon is responsible for 29, leaving visiting spinners with only eight collective dismissals. The pitch’s trademark pace and bounce, which curator Isaac McDonald said on Wednesday “will remain a constant and won’t be changing,” means a seam-heavy attack still appears the likeliest choice.
There had been talk that Will Jacks might be drafted in to provide part-time spin along with batting depth, but McCullum has stuck with Bashir—the spinner he publicly backed earlier this year as his first-choice option for the Ashes.
In July, Lyon gave a lukewarm assessment of Bashir, calling him “OK” while reaffirming that “Jack Leach is still England’s best spinner” in his view. Lyon added that spin bowling in Australia “is a huge responsibility, and a tough challenge for anyone who hasn’t done it before in these conditions.”
England’s 12-player squad for the first Ashes Test:
Ben Stokes (capt), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wk), Mark Wood.
