‘Will be a proper game’ – Paine means business ahead of intra-squad Ashes warm-up
The warm-up clash, which will serve to finalise the last remaining slots before the Trevor Hohns-led selection committee picks a 16-man squad for the five-Test showdown, also presents a chance for any new arrivals in the country to get acclimatised to conditions.
"It will be a proper game," Paine said in Southampton on Sunday, 21 July. "Both sides will be looking to win and both sides will have individual players wanting to do really well to press their final case for Ashes selection.
Hear Australia Test captain Tim Paine look ahead to the intra-squad match in Southampton ahead of #Ashes selection - https://t.co/q5qBq5gyuN @hantscricket @TheAgeasBowl pic.twitter.com/3eID0eoT00
— Cricket Australia (@CricketAus) July 21, 2019
"We certainly don't expect it to peter out in the second innings or play around with a run chase or anything like that. At the moment, it's a fair dinkum game of cricket, and that's been made really clear.
"We're looking at it as a real opportunity to test each other's skills so when we get to the first Test we know exactly where we're at and everyone's had a perfect preparation, and everyone's been put [under] pressure."
Australia haven’t won an away Ashes series for 18 years, since Steve Waugh’s all-conquering outfit beat England 4-1 in 2001. Paine acknowledged that early-season acclimatisation would be key to setting that record right.
In that, Australia will be helped by the fact that a large number of their players have spent the past two months in the country. While some featured in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019, a few others spent shorter but substantial time as part of the A squad, while the likes of Peter Siddle, Marcus Labuschagne and Cameron Bancroft have been involved in county cricket.
"You've got to be able to adapt to the conditions that are put in front of you," Paine said. "In the last 18 years, we haven't done that so well over here ... We're looking at what's going to be the best mix of players to win Test cricket in England. It's going to be a fascinating week or so and there's some real opportunities for guys in this week.
"Certainly, something we've looked at is the style of play, style of players and a number of different things that we think can help us win in these conditions."