England insist they won't underestimate Tim Paine at the Gabba in next week's Ashes opener after the Tasmanian wicketkeeper became one of Australia's biggest bolters in decades.
Paine came from first-class obscurity to be picked in Australia's squad for the first two Tests on Thursday, named as wicketkeeper despite having barely worn the gloves in the Sheffield Shield for the past two seasons.
Instead, Paine staked his claim to Test selection when he scored 52 against England last week for a Cricket Australia XI, where he impressed not just Aussie selectors but English players.
England assistant coach Paul Farbrace said his team weren't surprised to see Paine named despite spending seven years in the Test abyss since making his Test debut in 2010, largely due to a run of injuries.
"I think it's a great selection because I think he is a fantastic wicketkeeper," Farbrace said when asked if Australia appeared unsettled with Paine's selection.
"We saw him last week in Adelaide (in the tour match).
"But for a very unfortunate injury, he would have played a lot more international cricket than he has done.
"He's a great fella, he's an excellent wicketkeeper, he batted well against us last week, so whoever Australia pick, they have some strong players."
Australia's squad for the first Ashes Test evoked a wide range of emotions as they made six changes from the side that beat Bangladesh in September.
But England insisted they'd be prepared for whatever side the hosts named, as the visitors finalised their Ashes preparations against a Cricket Australia XI in Townsville.
"Whoever they went with, we feel that we've got a good knowledge on their players," Farbrace said.
"It's their squad. Our job at this stage is to focus on our players.
"We're only going to be interested in them once we get to Brisbane and think about that first Test and who we're going to play against and how we're going to get their certain players out."
