Coulter-Nile not in frame for Ashes opener

Australian paceman Nathan Coulter-Nile concedes he won't be picked for the first Ashes Test, but he hopes to be thrust into the selection frame later in the series.

Coulter-Nile has been plagued by back, shoulder, and hamstring issues in recent years, but his latest comeback from injury is gaining momentum.

The 30-year-old starred with bat and ball in last week's Sheffield Shield win over Tasmania.

And Coulter-Nile put in another strong display with the ball during the opening day of the two-day tour match against England at the WACA Ground on Saturday.

Coulter-Nile snared the key wicket of England opener Alastair Cook with the second ball of the day, and finished with 1-43 from 16 overs.

His pace and bounce regularly troubled England's batsmen, and he was unlucky not to pick up more wickets.

Coulter-Nile was rested from WA's Shield match against NSW in order to avoid burning out his injury-ravaged body.

And although he'll return to Shield duties against South Australia on November 13, he admits it's too early for him to be picked in the Test team, especially with Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, and Pat Cummins ahead of him in the pecking order.

"I don't think I'm any reckoning for the first Test, purely just because I haven't played (enough), and probably there are better blokes ahead of me," Coulter-Nile said.

"But I'll definitely be playing against South Australia barring any injuries.

"The body feels surprisingly good."

Coulter-Nile is a powerful striker of the ball. But with a first-class average of just 18.75, he said he doesn't deserve to be labelled as an allrounder.

"If I can contribute batting, eight, nine, or 10 - I'm happy to," he said.

"But I don't think I'll ever be batting higher than that."

Coulter-Nile said it was a nice feeling to snare the prized scalp of Cook.

"He usually smacks me in one-day cricket, so it was nice to get him early," he said with a laugh.