England will leave it until Friday morning to confirm their line-up for the opening Ashes Test, trimming the touring party to 12 but declining, for now, to nail down an XI. Ben Stokes, who usually names his side two days out, wants one last eyeball of the Perth pitch before deciding whether to gamble on an all-pace attack or back rookie off-spinner Shoaib Bashir.
“It’s probably pace and bounce again,” was the muttered verdict from one coach as the covers came off on Thursday, and that is the nub of the debate. Nathan Lyon loves the place – 29 wickets at 20.86 – yet visiting spinners have combined for eight wickets at 87.50. Stokes, though, keeps his options open.
“Team sport takes all 11 [players] to influence a game at some point,” Stokes said. “All 11 guys who get the honour of being selected in the next five games will be just as important as each other. He was always going to be in the 12-man [squad]. Seeing the way the game at Lilac Hill went, it felt like we could just get him as many opportunities to bowl as possible.”
Bashir, still feeling the little finger he broke while taking the winning wicket against India at Lord’s in July, leaked 151 runs in 24 warm-up overs last week. Tough return, but Stokes insists the youngster will have a role – if not now, then soon.
Should England go four quicks, it would be only the third time under Stokes they have ditched a frontline spinner. The attraction is clear: Jofra Archer and Mark Wood together, serious pace, genuine intimidation. The downside? England lost the previous two occasions they tried it – Lord’s 2023 and The Oval later that summer.
Wood tweaked a hamstring in the tour match yet looks ready. “He’s flying,” Stokes reported. “I know you guys say he only bowled eight overs in the game, but he’s been bowling for a long, long time. He has always been someone who can just hit the ground running in a game, and he’s bowling rapid.”
Any unused squad members will pop over to Lilac Hill on Friday for Lions duty against a Cricket Australia XI – a handy way to keep Jacob Bethell, Will Jacks and Matthew Potts match-sharp.
England XII: Ben Stokes (capt), Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk), Brydon Carse, Gus Atkinson, Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, Shoaib Bashir.
So, one final peek at a Perth strip that has fooled plenty. Then Stokes will pull the lever. Spinner, or unashamed pace overload? We’ll know at the toss.
