the second, his best first-class figures. International debut Tait was named in Australia's Test squad to tour Sri Lanka in 2004 as a replacement for the injured Brett Lee, although he did not play in a Test on the tour. After an impressive domestic summer, in April 2005 he was named in Australia's squad to tour England for the 2005 Ashes series and made his Test match debut against England on 25 August 2005 at Trent Bridge in the fourth match of the series. Some suggested that Tait should have played in the first Test of the series, but an injury to Glenn McGrath and the poor form of Jason Gillespie gave Tait his chance later in the series. Tait bowled 24 overs and took 3/97 in his first innings, the best figures of any Australian fast bowler in the match. While he went wicketless in the second innings, he held his spot to play in the final Test of the Ashes series at The Oval, taking 1/61 in the first innings and 1/28 in the second. A shoulder injury ahead of the Super Series against the ICC World XI, saw Tait ruled out of playing and despite calls from Jason Gillespie and Ian Chappell for his inclusion in the side for the 2006–07 Ashes series in Australia, he did not get a place in the team with the selectors opting for Stuart Clark. Tait made his One Day International debut in February 2007 against England at the Sydney Cricket Ground in the 2006–07 Commonwealth Bank Series. Later that month, he was selected as a part of Australia's squad to take on New Zealand for the 2006–07 Chappell–Hadlee Trophy in New Zealand. Tait was selected for the final two games of the series, taking two wickets as New Zealand chased down scores of over 300 twice and whitewashed a strong Australian team. Tait was selected in Australia's 15-man squad for the 2007 Cricket World Cup in the West Indies. Although he was not expected to play a major role in the Australian side, an injury to Brett Lee meant that a relatively inexperienced Tait assumed Lee's mantle as the spearhead of the bowling attack. Despite the added pressure, Tait performed to much acclaim in the World Cup, finishing the tournament as the equal second leading wicket-taker with 23 wickets at an average of 20.30. This included a Player of the