Bashir ready and excited for the Ashes, says Patel

SHOAIB Bashir is raring to go for the Ashes and make up for the anguish he felt at his summer ending prematurely, according to England spin bowling coach Jeetan Patel.

- DAVID CHARLESWORTH

Somerset and England spin bowler Shoaib Bashir

(Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

England's preferred spinner heads to Perth next week to continue preparations for the first Test on November 21, which is set to be his first outing since breaking a finger against India in mid-July.

Somerset bowler Bashir, who had a screw inserted into the little finger on his non-bowling hand, recently attended a spin camp supervised by former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara and has been working with England Lions.

Bashir will continue under the guidance of former England spinner Richard Dawson until linking up in a couple of weeks with Patel, who has backed the 22-year-old to flourish in Australia.