The pace bowler has taken 309 wickets in 71 Test matches with an stellar bowling average.
Australia's chair of selectors the selector has declared that captain Pat Cummins will play a "major part" in the upcoming Ashes series.
Rumors had circulated that Cummins might be unavailable due to a ongoing back issue that was still troubling him.
Previous updates from team management suggested no final decision had been made regarding whether he would play, with the five-Test series set to start on the 21st of November in the WACA.
The selector shared that Cummins is "building up" and was "optimistic" about his chances of taking part.
"We're aware that time is getting short and there are permutations involved, aside from his injury, but additional elements," he commented.
"We're encouraged. [We are] really confident that he'll participate in a major part. Hopefully it's the first Test. Otherwise, then we'll pick it up."
Injury History
He was sidelined the white-ball matches against India and New Zealand last month after examinations confirmed a lumbar bone stress.
Previous incidents include of spinal problems, with recurrences in 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2015-16 causing him to miss several home seasons in four years.
Cummins stated he would be ""aggressive" and "take risks" in his rehabilitation process to make the squad for the series.
Bailey noted that it was unclear if the captain had resumed bowling as part of his recovery but admitted it was "getting tight" for him to be fit for the first Test.
Contingency Plans
Should Cummins not be fit, veteran batsman Smith will assume leadership.
Versatile player Green was excluded lately from the ODI lineup for their ODI contests against India as a precautionary measure because of an abdominal issue.
Bailey described it as a "minor" injury and mentioned that he'll feature in the domestic first-class competition, so will be "in a good place to resume bowling."
"We put so much time has gone into building out the plan for him to be available for the initial game as an all-rounder," Bailey explained.
"His involvement was limited to the first two ODIs anyway. His aggressive style the cricket bat in white-ball cricket, should it hinder progress for another day, we just made the decision to take a cautious route."
Series Schedule
The Ashes: Australia v England
Spanning from late 2025 to early 2026
