South Australia's Joe Mennie is a shock inclusion in the first Test squad for Australia against South Africa next week after being preferred to Jackson Bird.
Bird had been expected to be included in the 12-man squad for the match at the WACA as one of four fast bowlers alongside Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Peter Siddle.
However, the Tasmania seamer has been surprisingly overlooked for Mennie, who toured with the Australian one-day team that was beaten 5-0 in South Africa this month.
His promotion is a major surprise, particularly after a horror start to his international career where he yielded the figures of 0-82 off 10 overs - the worst return for an Australian on debut.
Mennie was the leading wicket-taker in the Shield last season with 51 at 21. Like Bird, Mennie is not an express-paced quick and relies instead on accuracy.
Mennie, 27, had been low down the pecking order of Australian quicks but the depth of the country's fast bowling stocks is being tested with injuries to rising stars Pat Cummins, James Pattinson and Nathan Coulter-Nile ruling them out of longer-form cricket.
Mennie left NSW for South Australia in 2011 for more opportunities, aware he would struggle to get regular fist-class games behind the likes of Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Cummins and Doug Bollinger. It is a move that is on the verge of paying huge dividends, with Mennie now on the cusp of wearing the baggy green.
Mennie said last month after his selection to tour South Africa that he had hit career-best form in the last two season.
"The last couple of years I've hit my straps and found my game. I was really happy to get the opportunity to represent Australia A and then to get the call-up for the one-day tournament coming up is very pleasing," Mennie said.
Bird can consider himself extremely stiff to miss out after doing little wrong. He starred in his last Test appearance, taking seven wickets against New Zealand earlier this year, and was part of the touring party in Sri Lanka though did not play. The 29-year-old also bowled well in the Shield against Victoria this week, claiming six wickets.
