Test recall not the focus for Marsh

Mitch Marsh insists he is not getting distracted about the possibility of a recall to Australia's Test team as he continues his recovery from a shoulder injury.

The 25-year-old, who has replaced the retiring Adam Voges as captain of the Alcohol.Think Again Western Warriors, appears likely to play as a batsman only in the early stages of the summer.

Marsh has been sidelined because of a shoulder injury since March, when he was sent home from Australia's Test tour of India after suffering a recurrence of the complaint.

He scored 48 runs in four innings and bowled just five overs on that tour after managing the injury for most of last summer.

"My shoulder's close. I'm obviously back batting now and I'll play for Western Australia at the start of the season for a while just as a batsman until I get my shoulder strong enough to be able to bowl and throw," Marsh said on The Unplayable Podcast.

"It's going really well. I've thoroughly enjoyed a bit of time at home, as hard as it's been to watch cricket.

"We've had a chance to get away from the game a little bit and really re-focus my goals.

"It's obviously going to be a huge summer. Not just for me, but for Western Australia and Australia. I'm really looking forward to it now.

"I probably would have liked a bit more time to work on my game. I probably haven't hit as many balls as I would have liked, but it's going to have to be enough and I'm just looking forward to getting into the start of the season."

The No.6 position has been filled by Glenn Maxwell and Hilton Cartwright in the four Tests Australia has played since Marsh went down, but uncertainty surrounds some places in the line-up ahead of the first Test of the Ashes, starting November 23.

Three rounds of the JLT Sheffield Shield will be played before the Gabba Test, which could prove crucial to the make up of Australia's side.

Marsh's home state will host the third Test, which starts on December 14.

WA's first match of the Shield season is against Tasmania from October 26, but Marsh is unlikely to be bowling by then, meaning he faces an uphill battle to earn higher honours for the first Test.

"It's pretty open right now," Marsh said of Australia's pecking order for the allrounder position.

"Realistically I'm probably going to be pushing it for that (first Ashes Test) because I haven't even started bowling yet.

"I don't really like to compare myself to other allrounders. At the end of the day, if you're scoring enough runs and taking wickets, you're going to get looked at as the allrounder. That's the only thing I can control.

"I'd be lying if I said it (the Ashes) wasn't in the back of my mind every day.

"For me, my biggest goal right now is to be the best leader I can for Western Australia.

"My only currency right now is runs and wickets, so that's all I'm focusing on. If I do that, everything else will take care of itself."

And Marsh revealed he had worked on tightening his defence during the off-season in a bid to punch out runs more consistently in the longer formats.

Marsh has the capability to be a devastating hitter in limited overs cricket, but he averages 21.74 from 21 Tests, passing 50 just twice from 35 innings.

At first-class level, he has four centuries and an average of 28.85.

"Adding a really strong defence to my game is probably the one thing I wanted to work on," he said.

"I think, while you always want to be attacking, in the longer format you've got to be able to keep the good balls out and that's clearly something I haven't been able to do in the last 12 months. So I've worked on that…hopefully that will hold me in good stead."