All-Aussie clash given greater flexibility

The highly-anticipated clash between Australia and Australia A ahead of the opening Ashes Test will not be played as a first-class match, with 24 of the country's best players to lock horns across four days in Southampton from July 23.

Initially, the match was expected to hold first-class status to add an extra level of competitiveness for those players involved who are pushing for Ashes selection.

But given the number of players in contention and the proximity to the first Ashes Test in Birmingham, which starts just six days after the scheduled final day in Southampton, the fixture has been altered to allow more flexibility for men's head coach Justin Langer and the national selectors.

Test captain Tim Paine, who is set to lead the Australian XII, does not expect the change in playing conditions to affect the intensity of the contest with Ashes spots on the line.

"Whether it's a first-class status game or not, I don't think is going to take any sting out of the competitiveness of it," Paine told cricket.com.au.

"It's not overly important because there's going to be huge things up for grabs."

Players from Australia's World Cup squad, the ongoing Australia A tour and select players from the County Championship, such as Peter Siddle and Marnus Labuschagne, are likely to make up the 24-strong player pool for the Southampton showdown.

Just how the two teams of 12 will be picked is yet to be determined, according to Paine, but the gloveman has an idea he has put forward to the powers at be.

"I'm a big fan of the 'draft night' (concept)," Paine said. "Getting all the boys in a room together, we can make a team function of it.

"I've thrown my support behind that one, but we'll wait and see what happens in the coming weeks.

"The main thing is we'll have the 24 best cricketers in the country all playing in a hotly-contested game.

"It's going to be a great lead-in to an Ashes Test."

Australia's many selection questions are set to be hotly debated in the weeks leading into the clash, as well as during and beyond, with the National Selection Panel charged with the task of whittling down a glut of options into a best XI for the Ashes opener.

Australia have lost two and drawn one of their three most recent Tests at Edgbaston, and have not won at the venue in any format since the 2001 Ashes.

Australia A tour of the UK

Get live scores and all the latest news from Australia A's tour of the UK on cricket.com.au and the CA Live app

Australia A one-day squad: Travis Head (c), Matthew Wade, Will Pucovski, Peter Handscomb, Mitch Marsh (vc), D'Arcy Short, Kurtis Patterson, Ashton Agar, Michael Neser, James Pattinson, Josh Hazlewood (vc), Sean Abbott, Andrew Tye

Australia A four-day squad: Tim Paine (c), Marcus Harris, Kurtis Patterson, Will Pucovski, Travis Head (vc), Peter Handscomb, Matthew Wade, Mitch Marsh, Michael Neser, Jon Holland, James Pattinson, Jackson Bird, Josh Hazlewood (vc), Chris Tremain

One-day fixtures:

June 20: Australia A beat Northamptonshire by six wickets

June 23: Australia A beat Derbyshire by seven wickets

June 25: Australia A v Worcestershire, match abandoned

June 30: Australia A beat Gloucestershire by five wickets

July 2: Australia A beat Gloucestershire by nine runs

Four-day fixtures:

July 7-10: Australia A v Sussex, Arundel

July 13-16: Australia A v England Lions, Canterbury

July 23-26: Australia v Australia A, Hampshire