Root seeks ruthlessness as England prepare for tour opener

England will provide some major clues as to the identity of their team for the first Test of the Ashes when they name their side for this weekend's two-day warm-up match against a Western Australia XI.

Joe Root, England's captain, has confirmed he hopes to field a side of no more than 12 players - the fixture is not first-class so England could have used it to provide an opportunity for all 15 available members of their squad - adding that, in an ideal world, they will field the batting line-up they aim to use in Brisbane. Root also confirmed England would name a vice-captain ahead of the first Test.

"I don't think we'll look to play more than 12, that will be the ideal scenario," Root said. "We want to be as ruthless as we can and start the tour as we mean to go on.

"Obviously, we want to give guys the opportunity to play, but not at the expense of losing and not being at our best. We'll have the attitude of trying to win the game even though it is a two-dayer. I'm not sure if it will be possible to give everyone an opportunity to play.

"Yes, we'll play the same top six if we can. You want continuity in the top order. But you never know what can happen in these warm-up games. Somebody might get injured."

While England's selection for the weekend's game was complicated by injury to Moeen Ali and Steven Finn, it seems the longer-term decisions concern who will bat at No. 5 - it seems James Vince is going to have the first opportunity to make the No. 3 position his own - and who will take the role of fourth seamer.

Dawid Malan, who is now batting with a more open stance, is probably favourite for the No. 5 spot but Gary Ballance is a contender, too. Ballance only dropped out of the team during the English summer due to injury and, against some fine bowling on some demanding surfaces, did rather better than the figures suggest. He is also trusted and rated by Root. Indeed, the pair - former flatmates in Bradford - are sharing an apartment in Perth. "It's nice that we have someone who comes in to clean up these days," Root said with the look of a man who hadn't completely forgotten what's it's like to share a bathroom with Ballance.

The chances of Craig Overton playing in the first Test appear to be increasing. He bowled nicely in training on Thursday, generating surprising movement with the new ball and a little reverse with the older one, and offers more with the bat than either Jake Ball or Steven Finn.

His experience of fielding in the slips to the spinners might also be to his advantage. Without Ben Stokes, who usually stands in the slips to the spinners, England are searching for a new option. Judging by training at Richardson Park on Thursday, Overton is one of those options. James Anderson is another.

Either way, it seems highly likely England will pick their first-choice Test XI for the first four-day match at Adelaide in a week's time. While there might be some changes for the second - and final - four-day game ahead of the Test series, to ensure the seamers are adequately rested, there are unlikely to many surprises by the time the Brisbane Test starts. All of which means that Ben Foakes could be as hard to spot on this tour as a northern hairy-nosed wombat. And they're as tough to find round these parts as a local who gives England a chance of winning.

It says something for the holes elsewhere in the England batting-order that Mark Stoneman is an automatic choice for the first Test despite his relatively modest record. He has reached 20 twice in his Test career (five innings) to date and, with a highest of 52 and an average of 30, would not be said to have nailed down a spot in normal circumstances.

But such is the record of those that went before him - the role of Alastair Cook's opening partner increasingly resembles a plot from Game of Thrones - that England have taken great heart from his uncomplicated technique and his impressively equable temperament. While some have looked shell-shocked by their exposure to the top level, Stoneman described his experiences against West Indies by saying "I don't think I've ever had as much fun playing cricket".

"I felt comfortable at the crease and felt in control out there with composure," he said. "I would have loved to score more runs of course, but I really enjoyed it which I think is the key.

"If you don't enjoy it then you're going to make things a hell of a lot harder. You're not going to be as relaxed as you want to be to get the right level of performance."

He was certainly unruffled by his first exposure to the hype that surrounds the Ashes at an impromptu press conference on Thursday. Laughing off questions about the amount of sledging he could expect - "I'm looking forward to it," he said. "Aussies in general, if they get an Englishman in front of them, are keen to have a bit of a chirp" - and suggested the advice from both Cook and Michael di Venuto - something of a mentor throughout much of his career - was to keep things simple.

"Di Venuto said 'you're going to get a few bouncers,'" he said. "'They're going to try to push you back in the crease and then pitch it up and try to knock you over'.

"So he just said 'it's pretty simple, keep your head down, keep out of the way and watch the four balls'.

"Cooky said just give myself a chance. There will be a bit of extra pace and bounce with the new ball. So it's about getting through the first 20 or 30 balls, settling in, getting used to the pace of the wicket and then, after that, you can enjoy batting over here."

He has experience in these conditions, too. Since 2006-07, Stoneman has spent all but one English winter playing Grade cricket here - he faced Mitchell Starc at that level - and was a spectator for a day or two during England's thrashings in 2006-07 and 2013-14. He won at least one Australian over in the process, too. He met his wife, Serene, while playing Grade cricket and persuaded her to swap Sydney for Durham. He may find most Aussies at the Gabba far more resistant to his charms.

Whoever does represent England this weekend should have a great chance to impress. With Western Australia in Shield action this weekend, there is a green look to the XI that England will face. Only two of the team - seamer Nathan Coulter-Nile and batsman Will Bosisto - have Shield experience, though the opportunity to acclimatise to the WACA's surface is probably as valuable as any aspect of the match.