Australia spinner Nathan Lyon is on the brink of overtaking Glenn McGrath and become the team's second-highest wicket-taker in Test cricket. He currently has a total of 562 wickets under his name so far and is just a whiskar away from surpassing McGrath's tally of 563.
Lyon close to achieving another massive feat
Lyon is also just eight wickets away from amassing 600 scalps in the longest format. If he does go on to crack the milestone in the upcoming Ashes series, then he will become just the fourth spinner to do so after Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble.
Most Test wickets for Australia -
1. Shane Warner - 708 wickets
2. Glenn McGrath - 563 wickets
3. Nathan Lyon - 562 wickets
4. Mitchell Starc - 402 wickets
5, Dennis Lillee - 355 wickets
Australia missing key players
With Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood absent from the first Test due to injuries, Australia will be relying on the likes of Lyon, Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland to get them wickets. Debutant Brendan Doggett and all-rounder Cameron Green are the other two pace options present in the team. The Baggy Greens have also decided to hand a debut to 31-year-old Jake Weatherald, who is likely to open the innings alongside Usman Khawaja.
On the other hand, England have also chosen a pace-heavy attack for the first Test in Perth. They have opted to go for a total of five pacers and one proper spin option in the 12-member squad that they named for the series opener. Among the seamers is Mark Wood, who had an issue with his hamstring ahead of the match, but has been chosen after he proved his fitness with a 40-minute spell during a training session.
Australia's playing XI for 1st Test: Usman Khawaja, Jake Weatherald, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (c), Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Brendan Doggett, Scott Boland.
England's 12-member squad for 1st Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Brydon Carse, Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Shoaib Bashir.