Matthew Renshaw will have a golden opportunity to firm his Ashes credentials when Australia A take on New Zealand A in two tour matches.
The trans-Tasman second-stringers face off in Lincoln starting on Saturday in a specially arranged series to help Australia prepare for their Ashes defence.
The Duke cricket ball will be used in the clashes with selectors hoping the local cloudy conditions will replicate an English summer.
India tour members Renshaw and Mitchell Swepson are included in a young 14-man squad, with nine heading to South Island aged under 26.
Swepson is competing with Nathan Lyon, Todd Murphy and lefty Matthew Kuhnemann for spinning roles, with fewer spots on offer than the subcontinental tour.
So all eyes are likely to be on Renshaw, who failed after his surprise first Test selection, making a first-ball duck and two in Australia's loss inside three days in Nagpur.
Despite that setback the 27-year-old, who was born in Middlesbrough, remains in the frame for the Ashes series, particularly given David Warner's wobbles.
Jimmy Pierson will wicketkeep in New Zealand and may also like his chances for an Ashes squad that could include two glovemen.
Other hopefuls have signed deals in English county cricket to give themselves the best shot at the Ashes squad.
More than a dozen Australians are padding up in first-class cricket in England with Peter Handscomb at Leicestershire and Marcus Harris with Gloucestershire.
Test regulars Marnus Labuschagne (Glamorgan) and Steve Smith (Sussex) will also play county cricket before the World Test Championship final in June.
In the bowling ranks, Michael Neser will play for Glamorgan, Kuhnemann is at Durham and Sean Abbott at Surrey.
Nathan McSweeney and Sheffield Shield champion Aaron Hardie lead the Australia A squad, with four-day matches starting on April 1 and 8.
New Zealand Cricket has named an experienced squad, including recent Test players Doug Bracewell, Scott Kuggeleijn and Ajaz Patel.
AUSTRALIA A TOUR OF NEW ZEALAND
SQUAD: Wes Agar, Xavier Bartlett, Jordan Buckingham, Aaron Hardie (c), Caleb Jewell, Spencer Johnson, Campbell Kellaway, Nathan McSweeney (c), Mitch Perry, Jimmy Pierson, Matthew Renshaw, Mitchell Swepson, Tim Ward, Teague Wyllie.
