Australia will hand one of its promising young fast bowlers a special opportunity when Mahli Beardman makes his ODI debut against England at Optus Stadium in Perth. The 21-year-old Western Australia pacer has earned his place in the side for Friday's series opener, giving him the chance to begin his 50-over international career in front of his home crowd.

Captain Mitchell Marsh confirmed Beardman's selection during his pre-match press conference on Thursday. The final Australian XI will be announced at the toss, but the youngster's inclusion is already settled.

Mitchell Marsh confirms rising speedster Mahli Beardman's hometown debut

Marsh, who also represents Western Australia, confirmed that Beardman would feature in the first ODI against England. The young quick previously made his T20I debut against Pakistan in Lahore in January, where he picked up two wickets for 33 runs.

His international progress was interrupted by a back stress injury that kept him out for several months. Beardman returned to action in September and gradually built momentum through domestic cricket before impressing on Australia's A tour of India.

He claimed five wickets across two 50-over matches against India A. His standout performance came in the opening game, where he returned figures of 4/23.

The England series will give him another opportunity to test himself at the highest level. Australia will also be without Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood, leaving the younger members of the bowling group with greater responsibility. Mahli Beardman's pace could offer a different dimension to the attack.

It's just a stay ready piece at the moment for any Aussie stuff - Mahli Beardman

Mahli Beardman has been working on maintaining his pace and making it a defining feature of his bowling. He revealed that he had regularly reached the mid-140kph range during the early part of the domestic season.

The youngster is aware that consistent performances will be important if he wants to establish himself in Australia's plans beyond this series. He explained that his immediate priority is to keep performing rather than get carried away by the opportunity.

"If I put my best foot forward and play some good cricket, then I know that there will be some opportunity there," he told cricket.com.au ahead of the England series.

"It's just a stay ready piece at the moment for any Aussie stuff … (keep) trying to bowl fast and (have that) be a little bit of a point of difference is my aim."

I was super grateful to be able to get that exposure over in Pakistan - Mahli Beardman

Mahli Beardman has already spent time around the Australian senior squad, including during the 2024 white-ball tour of England and the T20I series against India last summer. Those experiences helped him adjust to the international environment before making his T20I debut.

He believes playing in Pakistan earlier this year also helped him handle the nerves that come with representing Australia for the first time.

"The first one is always the hardest one … obviously just with the nerves and the uncertainty," he said.

"I was super grateful to be able to get that exposure over in Pakistan and to be able to get the first game under my belt. From there, it's trying to build off the learnings and experiences that I had in Pakistan. I'm feeling really good and like I'm building into the season quite nicely."

With Xavier Bartlett, Spencer Johnson, Jack Edwards and Liam Scott also among Australia's pace options, Beardman will have competition for a regular place.