With the most famous cricketing rivalry fast approaching, Australia unveiled a 17-man squad for the first three tests of this year's Ashes.

With the all-important World Test Championship final prior to the highly-anticipated England tour, Pat Cummins and co will be primed to be at their best and look to become the first Australian side to win an Ashes series on English soil since 2001.

George Bailey, chief selector for the Australian Men's national team announced the squads for the WTC final and Ashes series on the 19th of April. The list included the surprise inclusions of Mitchell Marsh, Marcus Harris, and Josh Inglis as the trio make their return to the longest format of the game.

"Marcus (Harris), Josh (Inglis, reserve keeper) and Mitch (Marsh) return to the squad and will provide valuable depth and flexibility within their respective skillsets," Bailey said.

With every squad announcement comes a set of players that have been snubbed, here in this article we take a closer look at those names and identify the reasonings behind their omissions.

4. Michael Neser (Queensland)

The non-selection of Neser has definitely raised a few eyebrows, given his skillset in the English conditions. The selectors have gone with just four specialist pacers, which might prove to be a bit of a gamble in the seam-friendly pitches in England.

Neser also comes off an impressive domestic season picking up 39 wickets in his 8 matches at an average of just 17.15, aiding Queensland to a third-place finish on the ladder, just shy of the big final.

Neser also has the ability to make runs, scoring 357 at an average of 35.7 in the Shield this year and also notching up a mighty 136 against a really strong NSW attack. Neser's key weapon with the ball in his reverse-swinging deliveries could facilitate damage to the English batsmen.

However, unlikely to feature over the likes of skipper Cummins, Starc, Hazlewood, and Boland has resulted in his omission from the squad but Neser is currently in England playing County Cricket for Glamorgan and will be amongst the camp in case an injury halts one of the mentioned pacers involvement in the series.