Few players at the top of the world game have been around as long as Kasprowicz, who made his first-class debut for Queensland some 15 years ago.

He has long been familiar to English audiences too having played for Essex as far back as 1994, making him a contemporary of such Ashes luminaries as Graham Gooch and Peter Such.

Only recently established as a fixture in this hyper-competitive Australian team, Kasprowicz has taken advantage of time outside the Test arena to return to county cricket, first with Leicestershire in 1999 and most successfully at Glamorgan for the last three summers.

A physically powerful fast-medium bowler capable of moving the ball off the pitch and in the air, he could have been forgiven for assuming that his chance at Test level had gone after a stop-start international career which started poorly with two wicketless matches.

He has since been dropped and recalled four times but became a fixture last year after starring in Sri Lanka and then India as the Australians conquered their final cricketing frontier.

His success on those tours has led to the label of a sub-continent specialist – he was previously best known for his tireless work on the doomed tour of India in 1998 – but an admirable willingness to toil in the heat is just one of many talents.

A wholehearted performer who is always keen to be handed the ball, the least glamorous member of the tourists' attack has not displaced Brett Lee for nothing.

Capable of pushing the speedometer with a deceptive quicker ball, he allies solid batting and fielding skills to his evergreen bowling talents.

Perhaps unsurprisingly for a cricketer of such extensive county experience, Kasprowicz enjoys a better record against England than almost any other team.

In particular he will relish a return to The Oval where he took 7-36 in 1997, figures which remain his all-time Test best.