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Emerging all-rounder Aaron Hardie is a strong chance to force his way into the Ashes touring party after he was handed the opportunity to press his claims in similar conditions in the Australia A team.
Cricket Australia has named a 14-player squad to tour New Zealand next month where they will play two four-day matches in Lincoln with the Dukes ball in conditions designed to replicate England’s seaming wickets.
Batting duo Peter Handscomb and Matt Renshaw will also go to NZ after each has played a part in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in India while leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson, who hasn’t played on the Test tour, has also been selected.
Australia suffered from the absence of Cameron Green when the all-rounder was unable to play in the first two Tests in India due to a finger injury.
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Green is an automatic selection when fit to bat at six and be a fifth frontline bowler but the selectors could be tempted to take Hardie to the UK as a back-up option so the balance of the team is not impacted when their first-choice option is unavailable.
Aaron Hardie of Western Australia. (Photo by Will Russell/Getty Images)
His West Australian teammate has stormed to the front of the queue as the next-best all-rounder on the domestic scene after his breakout knock of 174 not out in last year’s Sheffield Shield final.
The 24-year-old former Australia under-19 representative has scored 313 runs at 31.3 for WA in a domestic season where pitches have favoured bowlers and picked up 13 wickets at 35.3 with his seamers. Despite not dominating with the bat this summer, his first-class average is still a healthy 43.52 after 22 matches.
He was also dominant for the Perth Scorchers in the BBL to show that he is ready to make the step up to the international arena.
Renshaw needs runs to re-establish his chances of making the squad for the World Test Championship final in June and the subsequent Ashes series after three failures in India.
Handscomb is more likely to be included in the UK touring squad after a solid performance in the middle-order despite the difficult conditions in India and his ability to fill in as a back-up wicketkeeper adds to his value away from home.
Their fate depends largely on what whether David Warner is selected. Renshaw, Cameron Bancroft and Marcus Harris are in contention to replace him at the top of the order if the veteran left-hander gets dropped after a lengthy form slump.
Handscomb could be squeezed out of the middle order if Travis Head, who has been filling in as an opener in India, returns to his usual No.5 spot in England, as expected.
Queensland’s Jimmy Pierson has been rewarded for several seasons of fine glovework and lower-order runs with selection in the Australia A squad.
South Australian left-arm paceman Spencer Johnson has been handed his first Australia A call-up and while his chances of making the Ashes squad are slim, he’s seen as a star of the future after taking 6-87 against Victoria and 7-47 against Queensland in his last two Shield outings.
As long as captain Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Scott Boland and current squad member Lance Morris are all available, the selectors may take one more seamer to England.
Michael Neser would likely still be ahead of Johnson in the pecking order while Jhye Richardson is also a proven Test performer but his season has been ruined by injuries.
Spencer Johnson. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
Richardson was earlier this week ruled out of the ODI leg of Australia’s tour of India and his IPL stint with Mumbai is also under a cloud due to a hamstring tear.
Players who have signed up for county cricket were not considered for Aussie A selection, such as Harris (Gloucestershire), Neser (Glamorgan), Todd Murphy (Durham), Sean Abbott (Surrey), Nathan McAndrew (Sussex) and Sam Whiteman (Northamptonshire).
Chief selector George Bailey emphasised they were looking to the future with a youthful squad with nine of the players aged under 26.
“The squad contains some experienced, strong performers in state cricket, along with several emerging players we believe have exciting futures ahead of them,” he said on Thursday.
“We are committed to the continued expansion of the Australia A program and these games are specifically designed to expose these players to conditions they may not experience in Australia.
Peter Handscomb of Australia bats. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
“With an Ashes this winter and a tour of New Zealand early next year, this is a great opportunity for this group to perform in similar environments to those countries.
“Having Pete Handsomb, Matt Renshaw, Mitch Swepson and Jimmy Peirson will add experience as senior players who can impart their knowledge of different conditions.”
The Aussie A side will host another two four-dayers and three one-dayers in Brisbane later this year as part of the agreement with the Black Caps.
Australia A squad:
Wes Agar (SA/Northern Districts CC)
Xavier Bartlett (QLD/Gold Coast CC)
Aaron Hardie (WA/Willeton CC)
Peter Handscomb (VIC/St Kilda Cricket Club)
Spencer Johnson (SA/West Torrens CC)
Campbell Kellaway (VIC/Melbourne CC)
Nathan McSweeney (SA/Glenelg CC)
Joel Paris (WA/Claremont-Nedlands CC)
Mitch Perry (VIC/Richmond CC)
Jimmy Pierson (QLD/Redlands CC)
Matthew Renshaw (QLD/ Toombul District CC)
Mitchell Swepson (QLD/ Sandgate-Redcliffe Cricket Club)
Tim Ward (TAS/University of Tasmania CC)
Teague Wyllie (WA/ Rockingham-Mandurah CC)