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'Philander with more pace': Pakistan wary of Neser

James Pattinson's suspension looked to have locked in Australia's pace attack but their opponents have kept a close eye on a fringe member of their squad

Michael Neser may well be Australia's reserve paceman, but Pakistan are wary of the uncapped Queenslander they've likened to a pacier version of prolific South Africa quick Vernon Philander.

Most think James Pattinson's suspension for the first Domain Test at the Gabba locks in left-arm quick Mitchell Starc for Australia's attack to take on Pakistan.

The NSW left-armer was expected to be battling with Pattinson for the remaining spot in the pace battery alongside fellow Blues Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.

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Pattinson, however, received a one-game ban on Sunday after pleading guilty to a code of conduct breach during Victoria's recent Sheffield Shield clash with Queensland.

That ban makes Starc the frontrunner to bowl against Pakistan from Thursday when the Brisbane Test starts, but Pakistan batsman Shan Masood isn't convinced Neser is out of the running.

Neser being picked ahead of Starc for his Test debut would be a long shot, but Masood said the tourists had been impressed by the 29-year-old during their game against Australia A in Perth.

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"Very decent bowler - will bowl that line and length all day and we likened him a bit to Vernon Philander but with probably a bit more pace," Masood said.

"He's a very skilful bowler but, looking at the whole Australian bowling line-up, he'll have to do a really good job to get into that because they've already got a pretty formidable attack."

Pakistan are weighing up whether to hand a debut of their own to 16-year-old tearaway Naseem Shah after his impressive showing in Perth.

With Mohammad Abbas, Shaheen Afridi, Imran Khan and Mohammad Musa also vying for spots, there's no doubt the talent pool in Pakistan's fast bowling is deep.

"I think the preparation in Perth will set us in good stead," Masood said.

"We spent 10 days over there, played against a really good Australian A attack over there. So I think we've done as much as we could to prepare and, hopefully, the experience from 2016, three of our main guys in our batting order, will help us all settle in well."

Domain Test Series v Pakistan

Australia squad: Tim Paine (c), Cameron Bancroft, Joe Burns, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, James Pattinson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner

Pakistan squad: Azhar Ali (c), Abid Ali, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Haris Sohail, Imam-ul-Haq, Imran Khan Snr, Iftikhar Ahmed, Kashif Bhatti, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Musa Khan, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood, Yasir Shah.

Warm-up match: Australia A v Pakistan, match drawn

Warm-up match: v Cricket Australia XI, November 15-16, WACA Ground

First Test: November 21-25, Gabba (Seven, Fox & Kayo)

Second Test: November 29 – December 3, Adelaide (d/n) (Seven, Fox & Kayo)