Chris Tremlett ready for an Ashes call-up

With the first-choice bowlers flying out to Brisbane in preparation for the first Test next week, former Hampshire star Chris Tremlett, Ajmal Shahzad, and Tim Bresnan impressed in their first match on tour after Andrew Strauss opted to bowl on a spicy Bellerive Oval track.

That decision was quickly proved correct as Australia A were reduced to 66 for five before lunch with Tremlett and Bresnan sharing two wickets apiece.

Shahzad was arguably the pick of the bowlers, however, claiming the key wickets of Ashes hopefuls Usman Khawaja and latterly Steve Smith, who led a tail-end recovery, in figures of three for 57.

But with Southampton-born Tremlett also praise-worthy in returning four for 54 and Bresnan chipping in with two for 65, England's apparent first-choice seamers - who left the ground during the evening session to catch a late flight to Queensland - will know they have strong competition for their places.

The only downside of the day was skipper Strauss falling in the seven-over period England faced before the close, although Alastair Cook remained - alongside nightwatchman Monty Panesar - to see the tourists to the close at 22 for one.

With James Anderson, Steven Finn, Stuart Broad and spinner Graeme Swann rested ahead of their early flight to Brisbane, the second-string attack were immediately given their chance when Strauss opted to bowl.

Shahzad probing new-ball spell from the river end brought him just one wicket, if perhaps the most notable scalp, in the telling opening exchanges.

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Number three Khawaja - touted as a possible debutant for next week's first Test - got an edge behind pushing forward.

It was no more than fair reward for Shahzad, who had narrowly beaten Khawaja and opener Ed Cowan's outside edge several times on a green-tinged surface providing bounce and seam movement under cloud cover.

Tremlett and first-change Bresnan also cashed in to share the wickets of Phil Hughes, Ferguson, Cowan and captain Cameron White before lunch.

Tremlett struck first when Hughes failed to cope with the extra bounce and edged to slip in the third over of the match.

Cowan and Khawaja kept out the next 11 overs. But after Shahzad broke that partnership, Bresnan doubled up with a delivery which nipped away cruelly off the pitch to open up Ferguson and take a faint edge for Matt Prior's second catch.

Switched to Shahzad's end, Bresnan bagged a bonus wicket when Cowan pulled an innocuous short ball just within the grasp of Panesar - surprising even himself perhaps when he clung on to the chance one-handed away to his right at midwicket.

England could be sure they had made the most of the conditions when White then drove disappointingly round a full ball from Tremlett to be bowled off and middle-stump.

The tourists had taken four wickets for 15 runs. But Smith and Tim Paine closed out the first session, and worked hard in early afternoon to post a valuable 50 stand in 21 overs.

Tremlett returned to have Paine edging a pull behind down the leg-side, but with the earlier assistance having subsided England's bowlers began to toil.

Smith took advantage of that with controlled aggression as he built an eye-catching innings to press his claims for inclusion in Australia's first Test team.

The 20-year-old, profiting mainly from front-footed pull shots in his 106-ball half-century, led a 59-run stand for the seventh wicket with fellow spinner Steve O'Keefe before before Shahzad got reward for his solid day's work with two quick wickets just after tea, The Yorkshire seamer produced a delivery that snuck past Smith's defence before finding some late swing remove Clint McKay to a bat-pad catch at short leg.

Shahzad should have had a fourth wicket when Ian Bell spilled a drilled drive from O'Keefe at mid-off as the young off-spinner hit out.

It proved a costly miss as O'Keefe frustrated England's hopes of a quick kill with a half-century as he added 45 for the ninth wicket with Mark Cameron.

It took Paul Collingwood, who replaced Panesar after he bowled 20 tight overs unchanged, to break the stand when he induced an edge from Cameron through to Prior.

Tremlett then finished matters when O'Keefe top-edged the first delivery with the new ball for Prior to take his fifth catch.

England lost their skipper before the close though when he flashed a drive off Cameron that O'Keefe held at the second attempt at gully.

Panesar was the unlikely nightwatchman but he kept company with Cook who remained unbeaten on 10.