Opener dropped as Australia name squad for first Ashes Test

Uncapped left-hander Jake Weatherald is a chance to make his Test debut after he was named in Australia's 15-player squad for the first Ashes Test against England in Perth.

Weatherald's inclusion was the biggest surprise as chief selector George Bailey announced the squad for the Ashes opener on Wednesday, with pacers Scott Boland, Brendan Doggett and Sean Abbott also earning a place in the 15-player group and in contention to feature in the absence of injured skipper Pat Cummins.

“We are looking forward to the squad connecting and preparing in Perth leading on from a busy domestic and white-ball schedule to kick off the Test summer," Bailey said.

“The squad gives us good balance and, with 14 of those chosen playing the next round of Sheffield Shield, we will continue to gather information as we move closer to the start of the first Test.”

Weatherald may partner regular opener Usman Khawaja at the top of Australia's batting order for the first Test of the summer against England in Perth from November 21 after 20-year-old Sam Konstas was overlooked after five Test appearances and a run of recent low scores at domestic level.

Bailey believes Konstas will return to the Test setup shortly, providing he can make runs for New South Wales at domestic level.

"I feel for Sammy. I feel like at the moment if he farts, it's a headline," Bailey said.

"We really like him...we like the skill set there, (we're) confident that over the long run it'll continue to build out.

"It's not going to be linear – no-one's passage through their career is linear. But the message is just to keep it simple, and score runs and bat for as long and as helpful a way as you can for New South Wales."

Bailey said Konstas had taken the news well when hearing of his omission.

"Every conversation with Sam is a joy – he's got a great outlook on life, remains incredibly upbeat," he said.

"(We wanted to) check in, see how he's feeling about the start of the year, what his focus is at the moment, and then just more what we could do to support him going forward and what we'd like to see.

"And as complicated as we try and make cricket, really it's about runs."

Weatherald was the leading run-scorer during last season's domestic Sheffield Shield competition and the 31-year-old has continued his form against the red-ball into the ongoing season.

Experienced top-order performer Marnus Labuschagne could also fill this void at the top of the order after he won a Test recall on the back of some strong performances at domestic level, while Josh Inglis is also included in the 15-player squad as another batting option and as back-up to regular keeper Alex Carey.

Former captain Steve Smith will lead the side as Cummins remains sidelined, with fellow batter Travis Head and all-rounders Cameron Green and Beau Webster likely to feature inside the top six.

Australia's First Test squad: Steve Smith (c), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster

England's squad: Ben Stokes (c), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue, Mark Wood.

Series schedule:

First Test: Perth Stadium, November 21-25
Second Test: Gabba, December 4-8
Third Test: Adelaide Oval, December 17-21
Fourth Test: MCG, December 26-30
Fifth Test: SCG, January 4-8