Australia take on Australia as nostalgic memories of the 1994/95 summer linger

The glory days of Australian cricket.

Two Australian sides, named after their respective coaches, the Hick XII and the Haddin XII take on each other from Southampton on Saturday.

Teams coached by Brad Haddin and Graeme Hick were named on Friday evening, with Usman Khawaja the only name missing out of the 25-man pre-Ashes squad as he continues his recovery from a hamstring strain suffered during the World Cup. Travis Head will captain the Hick XII, which features the fast bowling quartet of Starc, Cummins, Hazlewood and Peter Siddle. David Warner will open the batting for the Hick XII, whilst Steve Smith, Peter Handscomb and Matt Wade will headline the Haddin XII in the batting department, with their bowling attack led by James Pattinson and Nathan Lyon. The warm-up match will be the final opportunity for Australia to settle on it's final squad, with the first test only 11 days away. The contest will see teammates pitted against each other as they battle it out for spots, reminiscent of the Australia A vs Australia battles of the mid 90's which famously saw Matt Hayden and Glenn McGrath go shoulder to shoulder mid pitch in a One Day International.

In that year, the two Australian sides took on England and Zimbabwe, famously knocking off the touring sides in the group stages, with the young Australian A side being comprehensively beaten in the finals by the more fancied Australian side. This contest may not be as memorable, nor as fiery, but holds as much significance in the immediate playing futures of these young men.