Hughes 'a step closer to Ashes selection' with 'whirlwind' performance against Worcestershire

Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes came one step closer to being selected for the first Ashes Test at Trent Bridge after his whirlwind performance in Australia's penultimate day of their final Ashes warm-up game against Worcestershire.

Hitting an impressive 86 from 84 balls, Hughes also belted 13 fours and three sixes before his innings came to an ungainly end, with the batsman sprawled on the pitch after attempting an ambitious lap shot, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

According to the report, the score was one of Hughes' most daring innings of the tour, in which he scored three half-centuries in four innings, making it near impossible for the selectors not to pick him for the first Ashes Test.

Stating that his last shot before getting out was an attempt to 'up the ante', Hughes said that he went to work one and half fell over and got bowled, adding that it was about moving the game forward.

Although the No.3 position earmarked for Ed Cowan is not out of question for Hughes, the report said that the batsman has also made productive appearances in the middle order.

However, Hughes said that he does not know where he will fit in, although he added that to get selected, he needed to score runs and show a better performance, which was not that great before Somerset.