Australia have signalled their intention to fight fire with fire by picking five fast bowlers in a 13-man squad for next week's first Ashes Test against England in Brisbane.
The selectors kept faith in most of their ageing batsmen that lost the Ashes last year but beefed up their bowling stocks with the inclusion of Stuart Clark, Shaun Tait and the uncapped Mitchell Johnson, although only one of them is likely to play.
Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee and leg-spinner Shane Warne will lead the attack while all-rounder Shane Watson is also expected to play as Australia look for a counter to England's Andrew Flintoff and their explosive pacemen.
- Schedule: Ashes 2006-07
"We believe this is a squad capable of winning back the Ashes," Australia's chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch said in a statement.
"We've picked a very strong squad which reflects the fact that Australia has been successful at international level for some time.
"We are showing faith in those players who have contributed to that success, while at the same time injecting some youth into the squad with the inclusions of Shane Watson, Mitchell Johnson and Shaun Tait."
Tait played the final two Tests of the last Ashes series but has been plagued by injuries ever since although he caught the selector's attention by taking three wickets in a warm up match against the tourists last Friday.
DREAM DEBUT
Clark made a dream debut against South Africa this year when he filled in for the absent McGrath and was named player of the series while Johnson, who has played 18 first-class matches, is an awkward left-arm seamer who offers extra variety.
Hilditch said the squad would be trimmed to 12 players early next week but the decision on the final starting 11 would depend on the conditions at the Gabba pitch.
"We intend to pick the best balanced side to represent Australia against England," Hilditch said.
"The inclusion of extra pacemen in the squad reflects one of the strongest starts to the domestic season of young talent in recent memory."
Middle-order batsman Michael Clarke's hopes of fighting his way back into the side were dashed for now when the selectors opted for Watson, a highly-regarded all-rounder whose career has been stalled by back and shoulder problems.
And the selectors resisted calls to break up the proven opening partnership of Justin Langer and Matthew Hayden by overlooking Phil Jaques, who had pushed his claims by scoring back-to-back hundreds against the tourists.
Australia captain Ricky Ponting said he is delighted with the depth of his squad and could not wait for the Ashes to start.
"This series is going to be huge, we've all been waiting for it for 14-15 months and the crowds around Australia have been exactly the same," he said.
"There's been huge anticipation for this series and the players are really excited about getting to Brisbane and getting our preparation under way."
Australia squad: Ricky Ponting (captain), Justin Langer, Matthew Hayden, Damien Martyn, Michael Hussey, Shane Watson, Adam Gilchrist, Brett Lee, Shane Warne, Stuart Clark, Glenn McGrath, Mitchell Johnson, Shaun Tait (one to be omitted).
