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Paris on show after surprise selection

A strong India tour with Australia A could see the left-armer become Starc's back-up for Pakistan Tests

A phone call from Trevor Hohns may have been the last thing Joel Paris was expecting on Monday, but the Western Australia speedster believes his body is ready to handle the rigours of an Australia A tour to India.

Paris played just one Sheffield Shield match last summer – the Warriors' final fixture against South Australia in mid-March – a match that ended a 737-day domestic first-class drought for the 25-year-old.

So when the call came to say he was headed to Vizag to play two four-day matches against India in September, the left-armer was so surprised, it took him a day to even realise who was trying to call him.

"I had a couple of missed calls from an unknown number," Paris explained to cricket.com.au.

"I didn't have Trevor's number in my contacts.

"So I had a couple missed calls on my phone on Sunday and he sent me a message Monday morning and I rang him straight back.

"I didn't expect it at all after only playing the last Shield game.

"I'd planned to have a really good pre-season with Western Australia and start the season well there, but this is a real surprise and another great opportunity."

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Paris is the sole left-arm quick in the four-day Australia A squad and with Australia spearhead Mitchell Starc currently sidelined with a tibial bone stress reaction in his right leg, the tour is a perfect opportunity for the Western Australian to prove to selectors not only can he be a major weapon with the ball, but also that his injury-plagued body is up to the task.

Starc, who missed the fourth and final Test against South Africa in late March, is expected to be fit for Australia's away Test tour against Pakistan in October. Nonetheless, Paris understands the importance of using this opportunity to put his best foot forward.

"For now I'm just focusing on getting ready for that Australia A tour," Paris said.

"Hopefully I get the opportunity to play and play well.

"If I do that, it won't hurt my chances (in the future).

"Mitch will hopefully be back sooner than later, but if something does happen to him and he's out for an extended period of time, hopefully I'm fit and playing and hopefully my name will be up there.

"(Being a left-armer) is something a little bit different. Mitch, when he's up and going for Australia, he's very dangerous and opposition teams don't cope well with him.

"One of my biggest strengths when I'm going well is swinging the ball, so hopefully that change of angle holds me in good stead as well."

To Paris' advantage is his experience on the subcontinent, having played there with Perth Scorchers in the Champions League T20, while in 2013 he attended a training camp at the MRF Pace Foundation academy in Chennai under the tutelage of Glenn McGrath.

"It's certainly not bowler friendly at all over there, with a lot of flat wickets, so the fast bowlers take a back seat on those sorts of tour," he said.

"One of the main things for those quicks over there is to be able to take wickets with the new ball.

"I'm pretty sure that will be my role if I get the opportunity to play, so hopefully I can do that and do that well."

Dec 2015: Paris bags six for Western Australia

The Australia A tour is still several months away, but Paris said he and his fellow Western Australian quicks had already resumed bowling, with their pre-season training to soon begin in earnest.

And in very welcome news, after two years of being dogged by soft-tissue injuries – the worst of which saw Paris undergo quadriceps surgery – his body is feeling better than ever.

"It's been feeling really good," he said. "Around January, February I took a bit of a turn for the good and the body started feeling really well.

"I was able to bowl lots of overs and back up day after day.

"Even after a bit of time off after the season, I've been able to get straight back into things and try and get ready for August."

In that one Shield appearance against South Australia at Adelaide Oval, Paris bowled 39 overs and collected figures of 2-31 and 3-52, a performance he continues to draw confidence from.

"I felt really good throughout those four days in South Australia, I had really good rhythm and just enjoyed competing again," he said.

"It had been so long since I'd had that opportunity, so to get through the game, perform reasonably well and then pull up well was a bonus."