Australia quick Peter Siddle believes Pakistan’s Test squad is better equipped than ever to handle a tour of Australia ahead of their three-match series Down Under this summer.

Siddle identified the depth of the Pakistanis’ pace attack alongside brilliant leg-spinner Yasir Shah as key to their rise to number one in the Test rankings.

“Pakistan have surprised us over the last 12 months or so, they’ve started playing some consistent cricket,” Siddle told cricket.com.au’s The Unplayable Podcast.

“They’ve got some star players but they’ve been a lot more consistent with the sides they’re putting out there – they’re not chopping and changing and I think that’s where they’ve missed out in the past.

“At the moment it looks like they’ve got a pretty settle group of 13, 14 players that they go with. With a couple of injuries to bowlers, they’ve had bowlers come in and perform well, so that’s exciting for them.

“I think their squad will be suited to Australian conditions, probably more so than in the past.

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“They’ve got explosive players who can take the game away from you, and they’ve got a good assortment of quicks at the moment.

“They’ve actually got some fast bowlers that will be able to make it work on the wickets out here, and put us under a bit of pressure, so that’s a big challenge for us.”

Chief protagonists in that pace attack are likely to be left-arm quicks Wahab Riaz – who tormented the likes of Michael Clarke and Shane Watson with a stunning spell in Adelaide during the 2015 World Cup – and Mohammad Amir, who took eight wickets in the two Tests he played in Australia in 2009-10

Amir is the only member of coach Mickey Arthur’s fast-bowling group that played Tests in England to have played the five-day game in Australia, a country in which Pakistan have won just four of the 32 Tests they’ve contested.

However the first Test in Brisbane – a day-night affair with the pink ball – could help the Pakistani quicks find their feet in conditions more conducive to swing.

“I think people probably didn’t think that much about Pakistan coming out here this summer, but you look at their performances in England on wickets, not quite the same as here, but similar, and they’ve played well,” Siddle said of the 2-2 drawn series that culminated in Pakistan rising to No.1 in the world.

“So with South Africa for three Tests, and Pakistan for three Tests, it’s a big summer for us and one where we have to play some good cricket to get back that number one mantle.”

The Victorian quick, who has returned to bowling off a short run after a lengthy injury lay-off and is again likely to feature in Australia’s six-Test summer, was also conscious of the threat posed by Yasir, as well as Pakistan’s experienced middle order.

“They’ve got a class spinner, Yasir Shah, he’s unbelievable,” Siddle added. “He’s got a great record and he’s approaching 100 wickets at the quickest rate.

“The great Shane Warne has worked with him a little bit and has talked up how good he is.

“Then you’ve got the old heads, Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan just hold that middle-order together.”

Australia’s three-Test series against Pakistan begins on December 15 in Brisbane, and is followed by the traditional MCG Boxing Day and SCG New Year’s (January 3) clashes.

Only four members – Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh and Peter Siddle – from the 14-member squad that played in Australia’s victorious Test series campaign against New Zealand earlier this year, have experienced Test cricket in the island nation. James Pattinson was in the squad that toured Sri Lanka in 2011 but he didn’t get a game.

“I was over there when Shaun Marsh made his debut hundred (in September 2011),” Warner told cricket.com.au on Wednesday (May 4). “I’ve seen first-hand how the wickets are there. I know Pallekele is a nice batting wicket with a bit of late turn in the innings. Galle is traditionally a slow turner and in Colombo it’s a very nice batting track. For us, as a batting group, it’s about batting long periods and building partnerships and putting on good totals to make sure that our bowlers are in play come the second innings, whether it’s through reverse (swing) or spin.” Two of Australia’s recent tours to the sub-continent ended in disaster as they lost 4-0 to India in 2013 and then 2-0 to Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates in 2014. Despite having a career strike rate of 76.92 in the format, Warner saw it come down to 50 in India three years ago. It was slightly better in the UAE, where he was scoring at a rate just under 60.

Warner reasoned that the batsmen can tend to get bogged down in sub-continental conditions and that attacking the spinners could end up working in the batting side’s favour. “Sometimes we can get caught being too defensive and forget about attacking a little bit,” he said. “Sometimes that can work in your favour if you attack a little bit more the bowler might have to take out a short leg or an extra slip and put it somewhere else. “We’ve got to be prepared to bat time and battle the demons of whether the ball can actually turn as much as you think. For us it’s our bat in front our pads and actually using our feet a bit more and looking to score. We’re going to have to come up with a game plan to suit those conditions and you’ve got to stick to your game plan.” Whether his teammates follow suit or not, Warner is sure about taking the aggressive route in Sri Lanka. “At the end of the day, for me, my best way of approaching the game is to look to score runs. “If I’m looking to score then I’m in the right frame of mind. That’s always going to be my positive energy and intent and that’s always to look to score first and defend second.”