Josh Hazlewood was preferred to Peter Siddle as Australia's third pace bowler Wednesday for the opening Test against New Zealand on the bouncy Gabba wicket. Skipper Steve Smith said Hazlewood was picked to complement Australia's two left-arm pacemen Mitchell Johnson and Mitchell Starc in the bowling attack for Thursday's first Test. Siddle misses out despite taking six wickets in his last Test appearance against England in August, after Hazlewood was dropped for the final Test of the failed Ashes campaign. "Peter will be the 12th man. It's obviously disappointing for him, he bowled extremely well in the last Test match at The Oval against England. That's the team we've gone with," Smith told a Test-eve media conference. Hazlewood took five for 68 in India's first innings on his Test debut at the Gabba last December. Smith also said that all-rounder Mitch Marsh would bat at six with wicketkeeper Peter Nevill at seven. The Black Caps preferred Doug Bracewell to Matt Henry in their eleven. "It's a bit of a coin-toss with them but we're comfortable either way... and we felt that Doug was bowling a touch better at this time," Kiwi captain Brendon McCullum said. Smith pledged to maintain Australia's aggressive approach and lead by example. Smith filled in as skipper for the injured Michael Clarke in three Tests against India in the 2014-2015 home series, but he now has the job in his own right following Clarke's retirement. The 26-year-old has become the world's No. 2 batsman behind England's Joe Root after a phenomenal seven Test centuries in the last 11 months, and is looking to continue that form against the Kiwis. "For me as a leader my philosophy is to make sure that I am leading from the front, that's really important to me," Smith told a media conference. Following the example of Clarke and coach Darren Lehmann, Smith said he would make sure Australia continued as a hard-nosed team. In contrast to the more accommodating approach of Brendon McCullum's Kiwi team, Smith left no doubt how the Australians would tackle the three-Test series. "They've come over and they're playing that nice guy act again, but we are going to continue to play the hard, aggressive brand that we play so well," Smith said. New Zealand is chasing its first series win in Australia for 30 years. No team has beaten Australia at its Gabba fortress since 1988.
