Tait and Johnson in 13-man squad

Mitchell Johnson and Shaun Tait have been called into a bowler-heavy 13-man squad for the first Ashes Test at the Gabba next Thursday. The allrounder Shane Watson has beaten Michael Clarke in the race for the No. 6 spot while Stuart Clark was named alongside Glenn McGrath and Brett Lee.

Australia have picked an attack with six fast-bowling options, but there were no spots for Nathan Bracken and Jason Gillespie. If Johnson, a left-arm fast bowler, is picked for the final XI he will make his debut on his home ground while Tait has been recalled for the first time since injuring his right shoulder after playing two Tests last year in England.

"The inclusion of extra pacemen in the squad reflects one of the strongest starts to the domestic season of young talent in recent memory," Andrew Hilditch, the chairman of selectors, said. "It reflects the development of Mitchell in the past 12 months, some eye-catching fast bowling from Shaun and the performances of Stuart in South Africa and since his return from injury [in the domestic competitions]."

Hilditch said the panel had showed faith in the players who had contributed to Australia's recent success. "At the same time we are injecting some youth into the squad with the inclusions of Watson, Johnson and Tait," he said. "As far as Watson is concerned we see his inclusion to the Test squad as an exciting development for Australian cricket.

"Shane has an outstanding first-class record with the bat, averaging over 45, and his bowling ability gives us the flexibility in our attack that we have been looking for." The final XI will be picked in Brisbane after assessing the pitch, form and weather conditions and all 13 players will stay with the squad until the morning of the match.

Hilditch also defended the selection of Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer following the pressure placed on them by Phil Jaques' twin centuries against England over the past week. "The performance of the opening pair in this series will be crucial against a classy English bowling attack," he said. "Matthew had a great international season last year and is in fine touch. Justin has started the domestic season strongly, averaging over 70 so far."

Ricky Ponting said now the outfit had been named the players could relax and prepare for the highly anticipated game. "Our last 12 months of Test cricket have been terrific, there's been huge excitement, anticipation and build-up for this Ashes series," he said. "We have got an experienced team going into this series but I think historically what you want in any team is a good mix of youth and experience - we've certainly got that."

Australia squad Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting (capt), Damien Martyn, Michael Hussey, Shane Watson, Adam Gilchrist (wk), Shane Warne, Brett Lee, Stuart Clark, Mitchell Johnson, Glenn McGrath, Shaun Tait.