England keep options open as Stokes tells team ‘don’t be afraid’

PERTH: Captain Ben Stokes told England not to be afraid of Australia as selectors kept their options open Wednesday by naming off-spinner Shoaib Bashir in a 12-man squad for the first Test.

Four frontline pace bowlers were also included for the Ashes opener in Perth on Friday -- Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse, who was preferred to Josh Tongue. Ollie Pope, as expected, kept his place at number three ahead of Jacob Bethell.

Veteran pace ace Wood unleashed a fiery spell in the nets on Tuesday after an injury scare last week to prove his fitness, with selectors likely waiting until the last minute to make a call on whether he plays. But with Perth Stadium head curator Isaac McDonald predicting a typically fast and bouncy wicket, it would favour England opting for an all-out speed blitz.

Should that be the call, Stokes would offer support and Joe Root a part-time spin option. “Jofra and Woody are amazing bowlers and they’ll be huge for us this series,” Atkinson told reporters, adding that he was happy to play a support role.

“It’s been like that a bit throughout my career so far, sort of in the background, and I don’t mind at all.” Wood, Root, Stokes, Pope and opener Zak Crawley are the only players in the squad to have experienced Ashes cricket in Australia before.

It raises the prospect of some of the newcomers being overawed by the occasion. Stokes said he had emphasised how big the series was and they should embrace it. “I think if we were to come out and sort of not accept that and go, ‘Oh nah, it’s just another series’, then we’d only be lying to ourselves and lying to the fact of what the series is,” he told Sky Sports before the squad was announced.

“Facing what that feels like, looking it in the eyes, taking it on and not being afraid of the challenge that we have ahead of us,” he added of his advice to the novices. England have not won a series in Australia since 2010-11. Since then they have lost 13 Tests and drawn two Down Under.

Atkinson said not having played in Australia could actually work in his favour. “So there are no scars for me. For some others, I wouldn’t speak for them, but history would say it’s probably a good thing,” he said.

Australia head into the opening Test on the backfoot with pace spearheads Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood both out injured, leaving 100-Test veteran Mitchell Starc to shoulder a major burden.

He will be joined by fellow quick Scott Boland and spin king Nathan Lyon, with seamer Brendan Doggett likely to be handed a debut ahead of Michael Neser. “Sadly, injuries in fast bowling happen,” Starc said. “But good to see the depth in the squad. “We know what Scotty Boland can do, ‘Doggie’s’ coming off a hot streak at the moment and ‘Nes’ has been around for a while.” England squad: Ben Stokes (capt) Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Mark Wood