Pattinson in box seat for first Test

RESURGENT fast bowler James Pattinson is firming for a spot in the starting side for the first Ashes Test, possibly at the expense of Mitchell Starc, who is still adapting to red-ball cricket after five months of one-day games.

Pattinson, and Pat Cummins, were standouts in the intra-squad match in Southampton, coming after the Victorian snared 7-77 for Australia A earlier this month. Test captain Tim Paine said yesterday that Pattinson, who played the last of his 17 Tests in New Zealand in 2016, should be getting excited about “what might be ahead of him in the next week or so”.

After taking a record 27 wickets at the World Cup, Starc didn’t take a wicket at Southampton until day three. He also required scans on his knee after reporting soreness.

The left-armer, who took 10 wickets and was man of the match in his last Test against Sri Lanka in February, was given the all-clear and looks fit for the first Ashes Test. But Paine conceded he may need more time to adjust to the demands of Test bowling after a long stint bowling with a white ball in the Cup.

“He is getting better and better every time and we know what Starcy can do when he is on fire and on song like we saw in some of the World Cup games he can get any batter out in the world,” Paine said.

“He’s coming off a lot of white-ball cricket so Starcy takes a little bit of time to adjust back up with his lengths and stuff but he’ll be working hard next week again when he’s song he will be playing a huge role in these Ashes.”

Paine said Josh Hazlewood, who hasn’t played for Australia since the India Test series last summer, was also getting “better every day”.

But the praise was high for Pattinson, who set the Ashes as his only goal when he had spinal surgery in 2017, and could now take the new ball at Edgbaston.

“James Pattinson was outstanding again, he has been for the whole A tour,” Paine said. “But he took it up a gear out in this game, particularly in that second innings. He’s starting to get really excited about what might be ahead of him in the next week or so.”

The bolter in the Ashes squad was Michael Neser.

Neser, who played two ODIs for Australia last year in England, impressed selectors during this month’s Australia A tour then set the tone for this week’s low-scoring scrap by blasting out Warner and Marcus Harris in a haul of 4-18.