In the aftermath of a morning-after-the-night-before commentary that Cricket Australia would like to put behind it, Fawad Ahmed offered a refreshing take on what his adopted home meant to him.

Speaking after a thoroughly well earned call up to the Australian Test squad for winter tours of the West Indies and England, the Victorian spinner captured the best of Australian egalitarianism.

“We have a great system in this country, and it is amazing… everyone has the opportunity, and if you work and you perform well there will be opportunities for you. It could be anyone,” he said.

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Fawad knows more than most about hard graft and persistence, his 48 first class wickets through the summer were more than anyone else, capped with a record breaking 8-89 in last week’s Sheffield Shield final.

His storied road to Australian citizenship was of little concern to Rod Marsh, who pointed out that his season output, coupled with the fact that he’s a leg spinner, accounted for why he got the nod to accompany incumbent Nathan Lyon.

Fawad said he was “happy and so excited” to potentially play alongside Lyon, hoping to replicate the productive partnership he’s developed at state level with Jon Holland.

Marsh made it clear from the outset that it was a squad purpose-built for success overseas, which stands as a new frontier to conquer after near-faultless home form over the last two summers.

The only omission from the from the side that completed a 2-0 season victory over India in December and January is Queensland’s Joe Burns, who has been overlooked in favour of Western Australia’s captain Adam Voges.

Marsh cited Voges “magnificent” season, with Sheffield Shield batting as good as he’s seen in netting a remarkable 1358 runs at 104 with six centuries, for his elevation over Burns.

“[His] pure weight of runs, and the way in which he got those runs, you could just see Test player written all over him,” Marsh said.

Burns can still count himself the unlucky after collecting a pair of half centuries in his most recent Test, and an unbeaten ton in his final outing for Queensland this summer. Marsh suggested a tour to India as part of the ‘A’ team setup would help round out his game for longer term success.

It’s a squad blind to age, with Voges (35 years old) and Fawad (33) seeing off Burns (25) and 2013 Ashes tourist Ashton Agar (21) respectively. This could create a situation where half a dozen of the Test XI are over the age of 33.

However, in this context, Marsh did offer a window into thinking around veteran Chris Rogers, saying selectors thought “long and hard” about offering his spot to a younger player before concluding he was still a necessary component.

As expected, World Cup Final Man of the Match James Faulkner, and partner in white ball dominance Glenn Maxwell, both remain on the sidelines for longer-form duties for the time being.

While Marsh said the pair’s lack of red-ball cricket needed redress, he strongly signalled both would be front and centre of future considerations, with a plan for Faulkner he wouldn’t yet reveal, and a desire for Maxwell to play in all formats.

With the first four Test matches in six weeks spanning two continents and vastly different conditions, Marsh rejected resoundingly the logic of using the pair of West Indies fixtures as quasi Ashes tune-ups.

The exposure of a slow start is augmented by Ryan Harris (joining the squad in England after the birth of a child) and James Pattinson (once again injured) both missing from the first choice bowling calculations for the Caribbean Tests.

However, Pattinson’s injury does provide a reprieve for his state and club teammate Peter Siddle, who until the squad was announced may have pondered if he had played his last Test, stuck just eight short of 200 wickets for his country.

The surest sign yet on the post-Haddin wicketkeeping poser came via Peter Nevill’s selection as understudy, coming off the back of the New South Welshman’s most prolific domestic season that included an unbeaten 235.

Australia’s Frank Worrell Trophy defence starts in Dominica on 5 June, concluding the week after at Jamaica’s Sabina Park. The Ashes commences a fortnight later in Cardiff, the five-Test series running through to 24 August.

The squad:

Michael Clarke (capt), Steven Smith (vice-capt), Fawad Ahmed, Brad Haddin, Josh Hazlewood, Ryan Harris (Ashes only), Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Peter Nevill, Chris Rogers, Peter Siddle, Mitchell Starc, Adam Voges, David Warner, Shane Watson.

The schedule:

Frank Worrell Trophy

5 – 9 June, First Test, Windsor Park, Dominca

13 – 17 June, Second Test, Sabina Park, Jamaica

The Ashes

8 –12 July, First Test, Sophia Gardens, Cardiff

16 – 20 July, Second Test, Lord’s, London

29 July – 2 August, Third Test, Edgbaston, Birmingham

6 – 10 August, Fourth Test, Trent Bridge, Nottingham

20 – 24 August, Fifth Test, The Oval, London