Stroke of luck for Hopes

James Hopes believes a stroke of good luck may have assisted his recall to Australia's one-day squad for next month's Super Series. Hopes, the allrounder, revealed that an illness to the opener Phil Jaques on the eve of Australia A's match against Pakistan A boosted him from No. 7 to opener, where he struck 146 and cemented his place in the squad. He says the Super Series call-up still took him by surprise.

"It was a bit of a shock," Hopes told AAP from Rawalpindi. "The knock came a couple of days ago, I wasn't even opening. I was batting at seven until the day before the game when Phil got sick. So they asked me to do it and I thoroughly enjoyed it."

Hopes, 26, has already played one ODI for Australia against New Zealand this year. Less surprised to be included was Shaun Tait, who made both squads. But he said his delight at selection was tinged with disappointment that his mentor Jason Gillespie was axed from the side.

Tait, 22, is set for a home Test debut for Australia after being named in a squad of 13 to face a World XI in the match starting on October 14. He has also been included in the party of 14 for the three-match ODI series.

"We are good mates and he [Gillespie] has taught me a lot," Tait told reporters in Mildura, where his state side South Australia was training. "But because of the cricketer he is, I'm sure he'll bounce back."

Tait, who made his Test debut in the fourth Ashes match at Trent Bridge, said he had already learned a lot in his two games. "Obviously it's a different situation in Test cricket, due to the length of matches," he said. "I learned that you have to be flexible and change your bowling style. I was pretty tired, both mentally and emotionally, when I got back so I won't be doing too much here except freshening up."