Bashir has taken 68 wickets at an average of 39 in 19 Tests
England have kept their options open for the first Ashes Test by naming off-spinner Shoaib Bashir in a 12-man squad alongside five pace bowlers.
Mark Wood has been passed fit and seems set to play against Australia in Perth on Friday, with the final decision probably between off-spinner Bashir and seamer Brydon Carse.
If England opt for an all-pace attack - four specialists plus all-rounder Ben Stokes - it would arguably be the fastest group of bowlers they have fielded in an Ashes Test in this country.
On Wednesday Western Australia pitch curator Isaac McDonald said to expect "pace and bounce" from the surface at Perth Stadium, and it seems likely England will stick to a long-standing plan of an exclusively pace attack.
