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England have left decisions open for the initial Ashes match by naming spin bowler the young spinner in a 12-man squad combined with five pace bowlers

Mark Wood has been passed fit and appears likely to feature against Australia in Western Australia on the coming Friday, with the final decision possibly between spinner Bashir and seamer Carse

Pitch Conditions

If the visitors select an all-pace attack - four main pacers combined with all-rounder Stokes - it would arguably be the quickest collection of pacemen they have used in an Test against Australia in Australia

Earlier this week local pitch curator McDonald said to expect "fast and bouncy conditions" from the pitch at the venue, and it looks possible England will adhere to a established strategy of an pace-only strategy

However the English team have also noted a dryness to the surface, placing the spinner into consideration

Slow Bowling Factors

In the short history of Perth Stadium - five earlier Tests have been staged here - Australian off-spinner the experienced spinner is the top wicket-taker with 29 dismissals

The English management have favored the young spinner, 22, as their first-choice spinner for over twelve months and in recent months he was recognized as the youngest England bowler to reach half-century of wickets in Tests

But he has missed a competitive game following claiming the concluding scalp in a dramatic victory over India in the third Test at the famous ground in recently

Recent Issues

He has been out with a hand problem and found it difficult in the single preparation match against England Lions, returning overall statistics of two wickets for 151 runs from 24 overs

This creates the scenario of him participating in an Test against Australia without being attached to a first-class side

His contract at the domestic team expired at the conclusion of the domestic season

Likely Lineup

However, an English side featuring Wood, Jofra Archer, Atkinson, skipper Stokes and Carse - every one of them are able to achieve high speeds - remains the most likely outcome

The initial game begins at early morning GMT on the weekend, with real-time updates, Test Match Special commentary and real-time features accessible

Playing Group

Selected players for first Ashes Test: Duckett, Zak Crawley, Pope, Joe Root, Brook, Stokes (leader), Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Gus Atkinson, Carse, Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, Bashir

Historical Context

Even though a several English Ashes victories at domestically and internationally have been constructed around fast bowling, they have not previously used as many express pace bowlers in the identical lineup

The side that succeeded at domestically in the celebrated contest of 2005 included Steve Harmison, Jones and Flintoff

Raymond Illingworth's winning English side to the host nation in those years had Bob Willis, Peter Lever and Snow, and the England team that won in 1954-55 included Statham and Tyson

Present Circumstances

This time around - among the most highly anticipated England-Australia contests in modern times - the English team are looking to overturn an poor history - they have failed to win a Test in Australia since that year

Only five members of the extended squad have participated in a Test in the host nation, but Atkinson comments that could help the visitors

"This might be an positive," he told the press

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

"In our case, we are a quite calm, very positive squad

"No negative experiences

"It's very exciting

"Everyone considers it a massive chance to achieve something remarkable"

Host Team Situation

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

The hosts are likely to hand a first cap to batsman Weatherald, with uncapped fast bowler Brendan Doggett also joining after fitness concerns to skipper Cummins and fellow seamer Josh Hazlewood