Ashes spots up for grabs in Aussie showdown: Paine

If there was any doubt surrounding the legitimacy of Australia's intra-squad match ahead of the Ashes, Test captain Tim Paine has dismissed it faster than he whips off the bails.

"It will be a proper game," Paine said on Sunday in Southampton. "Both sides will be looking to win and both sides will have individual players wanting to do really well to press their final case for Ashes selection.

"We certainly don't expect it to peter out in the second innings or play around with a run chase or anything like that.

"At the moment it's a fair dinkum game of cricket and that's been made really clear.

"We're looking at it as a real opportunity to test each other's skills so when we get to the first Test we know exactly where we're at and everyone's had a perfect preparation, and everyone's been put on pressure."

The four-day match, from Tuesday to Friday, is set to determine the final few spots up for grabs in Australia's Ashes squad and present the competitors another chance to familiarise themselves with English conditions.

Not since Steve Waugh's charges in 2001 has an Australian men's team won an Ashes series in the United Kingdom, where managing the foreign pitches and Dukes ball have been perhaps the biggest hurdles to overcome.

But due to the World Cup being staged in England and strategic planning from Cricket Australia, Australia's 25-strong squad, of which the two teams for the all-Australian clash are comprised, has already enjoyed a lengthy stay in the old country.

Australia's World Cup players in camp have been in Britain since late May, those who featured on the Australia A tour of England arrived either mid-June or early July, while the three players drafted in from county cricket – Peter Siddle, Marnus Labuschagne and Cameron Bancroft – have a large volume of recent cricket under their belts.

Mastering the conditions and identifying which players excel among them is a major objective for the players and selectors in the Southampton fixture.  

"You've got to be able to adapt to the conditions that are put in front of you," said Paine. "In the last 18 years we haven't done that so well over here.

"It's something we've certainly looked at, we're looking at even with our selection.

"We're looking at what's going to be the best mix of players to win Test cricket in England. It's going to be a fascinating week or so and there's some real opportunities for guys in this week.

"Certainly, something we've looked at is the style of play, style of players and a number of different things that we think can help us win in these conditions."

2019 Qantas Ashes Tour of England

Tour match: Hick XII v Haddin XII, July 23-26

First Test: Edgbaston, August 1-5

Tour match: Australians v Worcestershire, August 7-9

Second Test: Lord's, August 14-18

Third Test: Headingley, August 22-26

Tour match: Australians v Derbyshire, August 29-31

Fourth Test: Old Trafford, September 4-8

Fifth Test: The Oval, September 12-16