Queensland welcome back big guns

Queensland have added some major strength to their line-up for next week's matches against Western Australia as they attempt to lift themselves off the bottom of the Pura Cup table. Andrew Symonds, Shane Watson and Mitchell Johnson are back after helping Australia win the Champions Trophy in India, while Matthew Hayden has returned from a finger injury.

The four will provide some much-needed experience as Queensland, last year's Pura Cup winners, travel to the WACA for their four-day match starting on Sunday hoping to score their first points of the season after two losses from two games. Brendan Nash, Craig Philipson, Chris Swan and Grant Sullivan have been omitted from the team that lost to New South Wales by 74 runs last week.

Watson and Johnson will both be keen to impress selectors ahead of the first Ashes Test at Brisbane starting on November 23. Johnson said his good form at the Champions Trophy did not mean he was a certainty to play against England. "I think all the bowlers at the moment are going very well," he told the ABC. "Stuart Clark has come back, he's bowling very well and getting runs as well I see. Nathan Bracken is bowling very well at the moment, so I think all the bowlers are going very well at the moment and it will be a good contest I think."

Watson hoped his two half-centuries and eight wickets at the Champions Trophy had improved his chances of playing in the first Test. "[It] definitely wouldn't have hurt my case anyway, so it's exciting and hopefully my name will be read out," he said.

Symonds, Watson and Johnson have also returned to the Ford Ranger Cup squad that will play the Warriors on Friday week. Nash, Scott Brant and Michael Buchanan have been left out of the one-day side.

Pura Cup squad Jimmy Maher (capt), Matthew Hayden, Martin Love, Lachlan Stevens, Clinton Perren, Andrew Symonds, Shane Watson, James Hopes, Chris Hartley (wk), Andy Bichel, Daniel Doran, Mitchell Johnson.

FR Cup squad Jimmy Maher (capt), Matthew Hayden, James Hopes, Andrew Symonds, Shane Watson, Clinton Perren, Craig Philipson, Chris Hartley (wk), Andy Bichel, Mitchell Johnson, Ashley Noffke, Chris Simpson.