Aussie stars in Isle of Wight hit-out

Key members of Australia's Ashes squad, including returning quick and new dad Ryan Harris, will line up in a two-day match on the Isle of Wight starting June 18 as the remainder of the group who just completed a 2-0 Test series sweep in the Caribbean begin their journey to London for the lengthy Qantas Tour of the British Isles.

While some Australian players were playing video games in the airport lounge in Jamaica on Wednesday (AEST), Harris, allrounder Mitch Marsh, opener Chris Rogers and backup 'keeper Peter Nevill are preparing to play in a game with teams made up of players from the Elite International Academy XI and Hampshire Second XI.

The Elite International Academy was launched at the Ageas Bowl in 2013 and each year takes in a number of promising young cricketers from Australia and New Zealand.

Follow: Elite International Academy on Twitter

The Australian squad members will play in the match along with three players sent over as part of the Kerry Packer Foundation scholarship; Jake Doran, Tom Andrews and Sean Willis. Western Australian quick Ryan Duffield and West End Redbacks leg-spinner Adam Zampa will also feature, as will promising young Victorial quick Ben Ashkenazi.

And Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars player Alex Blackwell, who along with national teammate Erin Osborne recently played against members of the New Zealand ODI squad, will feature in the match as she ramps up her preparations for the women's Ashes series.

Osborne was set to play in this match but she a minor shoulder injury has her resting up for the all-important international matches later in the English summer.

Team 1: Chris Rogers, Sean Terry, Tom Alsop, Mitch Marsh, Peter Nevill, Josh Finnie, Felix Organ, Alex Blackwell, Adam Zampa, Tom Andrews, Ryan Duffield, James Tomlinson

Team 2: Joe Gatting, Michael Pollard, Jake Doran, Lewis McManus, Sean Willis, Brad Taylor, Ben Duggan, Mason Crane, Brad Wheal, Tom Barber, Ryan Harris, Ben Ashkenazi

Start Time: 12:00pm local time (9pm AEST Thursday)

Harris and Rogers

Harris missed the tour of the West Indies due to the birth of his first son, Carter James, while Rogers' concussion from a hit to the helmet from a net bowler early in the tour ruled him out of both Tests.

Marsh missed both Tests with the National Selection Panel (NSP) sticking with Shane Watson while the Isle of Wight match presents a good opportunity for Nevill to get some much practice should he be needed to step up at some stage during the Ashes if something unforseen happened to Brad Haddin.

For Harris, the match on Isle of Wight at New Close Cricket Club will be his first competitive hit-out since he took two wickets against India in the final Commonwealth Bank Test against India in January.

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The New Close Cricket Club ground // newclose.org

However, he has undertaken an extensive strength and conditioning programme while away from the Australian team – his first proper pre-season since 2008 – which has all been designed to get his body in to peak condition for the five-Test Ashes series.

Cricket Australia insisted Harris sit out the second half of the Bupa Sheffield Shield season following the Test series against India in which the right-arm quick admits was well below his best.

Harris is realistic about his chances of forcing his way back into an Australian pace attack that consists of Mitchell Johnson (who took 37 wickets in Australia's 5-0 Ashes whitewash 18 months ago), Mitchell Starc (2015 World Cup Player of the Tournament) and Josh Hazlewood (the player of the series against West Indies).

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The Australian attack for the 2013-14 Ashes whitewash // Getty Images

"I'm definitely not expecting to walk straight back into that team," Harris wrote in a Fairfax column last week. "That's the price I pay. I've stayed behind here for a great reason – having a baby is a life-changing experience – and by doing that it's given someone else an opportunity.

"Both aspects of my preparation, my fitness and (now bigger) family, have been ideal. Now it's time to focus on the big prize: the Ashes.

"Of course I'm going to be doing all I can to be part of our first-choice attack, but whoever is bowling those balls in the Test matches won't matter as long as we can win our first series over there since 2001."

See all 22 wickets claimed by Ryan 'Ryno' Harris in the 2013-14 Ashes series

Bupa Support Team Head Coach Darren Lehmann admitted in his regular cricket.com.au column this week the selection dilemma the NSP faces, keeping in mind Victorian quick Peter Siddle is also in the squad.

"Those guys have given us a massive headache – albeit a good one – and we have a really tough decision to make when it comes to picking the side for the first Test in Cardiff," Lehmann wrote on this website.

"Two of those five guys are going to be unbelievably unlucky to miss out, but that's what happens when you're playing good cricket.

"We just have to pick the right three fast bowlers to take the 20 wickets in that first Test. And that's not to say we'll play those three all series, but we'll just pick the XI for that match and go from there."

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Chris Rogers is about to enter what will likely be his last Test series // Getty Images

Rogers enters the Isle of Wight match coming off the back of six consecutive Test half-centuries against India, but he – along with the likes of David Warner and Shane Watson – have been put on notice by 'Boof' to make some pre-Ashes runs in the lead-in tour matches.

"There's no guarantees with anything in our XI at the moment, to be perfectly honest," Lehmann said, when asked about Rogers. "What we do know is you have to perform well day in and day out.

"He's got a few tour games to prove he's back to full fitness to start with, and making runs is important for us."

Meanwhile, the rest of the Australian squad have tonight arrived in England ahead of their first match against Kent at Canterbury on June 25.

The players seemed to be in high spirits as they prepared to leave Jamaica with David Warner tweeting: "London bound, here we come. Look forward to a lovely few months in the UK. #cricket #family #funtimes."

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