Vlaeminck catching the eye of star duo

Young speedster Tayla Vlaeminck has been bowling up a storm as she vies for a spot on the upcoming Ashes tour of the United Kingdom – and she's caught the eye of two Australian stars.

Vlaeminck has shrugged off an injury-prone past to put herself in the frame for the multi-format, points-based series, which will see Australia play England in three ODIs, one Test and three T20Is between July 2-31.

Allrounder Ellyse Perry has had an up-close look at Vlaeminck's progress from a knee injury and she's been seriously impressed by what she's seeing from the Bendigo product who is regarded as one of Australia's fastest female bowlers.

"I'm pretty scared to face Tay whenever that time comes, she looks like she's bowling pretty quick," Perry, who has relocated to Melbourne and will play for Victoria this summer, told cricket.com.au ahead of the camp.

"I've seen her in the nets (at Junction Oval) quite a few times now and I've had a chance to see just how she's worked with her rehab over the last couple of months.

"She's incredibly positive about everything, it's quite infectious in a lot of ways.

"The way she's bowling in the nets, it's really exciting and I've got my fingers and toes crossed for her."

Australia batter Beth Mooney, who is currently training alongside National Performance Squad member Vlaeminck at Brisbane's Bupa National Cricket Centre, has been keeping a close eye on the right-arm quick and likes what she's seeing.

"I was pretty impressed watching Tayla Vlaeminck bowl in the nets, I think she could be a dark horse for the Ashes squad," Mooney said.

"She looks like she's bowling with a bit of gas, and I was pretty lucky that I didn't have to face her in the nets as my first hit against bowlers."

With Australia boasting four seamers in their list of contracted bowlers – Perry joined by Megan Schutt, Nicola Carey and Delissa Kimmince – Vlaeminck and fellow NPS quick Lauren Cheatle appear the frontrunners to be included as an extra pacer in the Ashes touring party.

There's also an opportunity for one or both to feature in the Australia A squad that will tour England concurrently with the senior side, and Perry can see both players making a splash overseas this Australian winter.

"Both Tay and Lauren present something a little bit different, Tay has got that extra bit of pace and that really whippy action, and then Cheats being a left-armer, she brings the ball back in," Perry said.

"Those are two really handy nuances to pace bowling, so I think both of them have got a really good chance to have an impact over in England."

Perry has also done plenty of work with Sydney Sixers teammate Cheatle, who played her first match in Australian colours in almost two years during February's ODI series against New Zealand.

The left-arm quick, who burst onto the international scene aged 17 in 2016, finally strung together an injury-free summer after a series of shoulder and back issues.

"It's been really pleasing to see Cheats do well, particularly towards the end of the last season," Sixers captain Perry said.

"She just finally got a chance to be on the park consistently and play more matches and as a result I think she's just got a lot more confidence about her bowling.

"I know she's been working particularly hard over that period and now starting pre-season on her strength, particularly in her fitness, so I'm really hoping she has a great season coming up because she's got a lot of potential."

Vlaeminck and Cheatle are both part of the National Performance Squad, a group of up-and-coming players seen as the group most likely to break into the senior team, alongside fellow pace bowlers Maitlan Brown, Tahlia McGrath, Belinda Vakarewa and Annabel Sutherland.

Vlaeminck told cricket.com.au there was a healthy rivalry between the crop of young quicks, who also have forged a bond during the past two years in the NPS program.

"We're all competitive fast bowlers, so when you get us all together we like to have a crack," she said.

"But it's also really good to learn off each other as well, everyone has different strengths and weaknesses."

CommBank Ashes Tour of England

First ODI Grace Road, Leicester, July 2

Second ODI Grace Road, Leicester, July 4

Third ODI St Lawrence Ground, Canterbury, July 7

Test The County Ground, Taunton, July 18-21

First T20 County Ground, Chelmsford, July 26

Second T20 The County Ground, Hove, July 28

Third T20 Bristol County Ground, Bristol, July 31

A Test victory is worth four points (two each for a draw), two points are awarded for ODI and T20 wins