James Pattinson and Usman Khawaja lined up for first Ashes Test

The first Test will likely be James Pattinson’s first for Australia since February 2016 when he faced New Zealand in Brendon McCullum’s final international fixture

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Justin Langer has hinted that both Usman Khawaja and James Pattinson will play in the first Test of the Ashes series at Edgbaston.

The game, which begins on Thursday, will be James Pattinson’s first for Australia since February 2016 when he faced New Zealand in Brendon McCullum’s final international fixture.

Khawaja’s return comes after he suffered a hamstring injury during Australia’s World Cup defeat against South Africa.

“Usman Khawaja will definitely be in. He’s fit, ready to go, he’s playing well and he’s a seasoned pro,” Langer said as the makeup of Australia’s playing eleven begins to take shape.

He added that James Pattinson was “more than likely” to be included in the team, leaving the remainder of Australia’s battery of seamers battling it out to join Pattinson, Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon.

“Starcy, Peter Siddle and Josh Hazlewood (are fighting) for one spot,” the head coach added. “Three pretty good players to try to find a spot for. All three are great or very, very good bowlers aren’t they?”

As for David Warner’s likely partner at the top of the order, Langer admits it is one of the toughest choices to be made.

Marcus Harris has been the position’s most recent incumbent but has found his role threatened by the return of Cameron Bancroft.

The right-hander, who spent the first part of the season captaining Durham, returns to a Test squad for the first time since he was banned for his part in the ball-tampering scandal. He strengthened his case for inclusion in the first Test by making an unbeaten 93 in Australia’s intra-squad warmup match last week.

“The opening partnership is going to be really hard,” Langer acknowledged. “They (Bancroft and Harris) have both got a really strong case.”

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