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Brendan Doggett has started bowling ahead of the first Ashes Test against England, signalling that he is likely to make his debut for Australia in the opening match of the series, set to begin from November 21 at the Optus Stadium in Perth.
Doggett was seen bowling full throttle in a video uploaded by ESPNcricinfo on X. With Josh Hazlewood sidelined by a hamstring injury last week, the 31-year-old's prospects of debuting in the first Test have improved considerably. Doggett acknowledges he can't match the wicket-taking records of Cummins and Hazlewood, but says he aims to replicate aspects of their style. "I probably don't take as many wickets as them. They're tall quicks. They get a lot of bounce. I'm obviously just a little bit skiddier, but try and move the ball off the wicket both ways and try to swing the ball away from a right-hander. I try and emulate them as much as I can. Hopefully, a little bit of a point of difference for me might help. But we'll wait and see," said Doggett as quoted by ESPNcricinfo. Notably, with designated captain Pat Cummins also ruled out of the fixture, Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland are the only first-choice pacers available for the hosts. With Sean Abbott, Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson, and Spencer Johnson also ruled out, Australia are running thin on their bowling resources. If Doggett makes his debut in Perth, he will be the first pacer to make his Test debut for Australia since Scott Boland in December 2021. Doggett is enjoying the best form of his career, taking 63 wickets at 20.12 across his last 13 first-class matches for South Australia, Australia A and Durham. During this period he has bagged seven five-wicket hauls--including four six-fors--and has already taken two five-fors in his only two Shield games this season after returning from a minor hamstring injury. Australia's updated squad for the first Ashes Test: Steve Smith (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster. (ANI)
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