The English have gone into the match without a spinner after opting to leave out James Tredwell.
In contrast, Australia have two spinning options in Glenn Maxwell and Xavier Doherty.
England will be looking to bounce back from the disastrous Ashes Test series, which Australia won 5-0.
The match is the first opportunity to see how the shell-shocked tourists progress from their nightmare Test series, with captain Cook demanding an improvement, and quickly.
A rattled England head into the series without the experience of Kevin Pietersen and Jimmy Anderson, who have both been rested, with Cook leading a team that has much to prove.
He also needs to rebuild dressing room discipline with Test wicketkeeper Matt Prior on Thursday saying that during the Ashes, the players had shown a lack of respect for both the captain and coach Andy Flower -- who is reportedly at odds with Pietersen.
Former left-arm spinner Ashley Giles has taken over from Flower as the one-day coach, assuming responsibility with Cook for repairing some of the damage inflicted by Australia.
Only all-rounder Ben Stokes and paceman Stuart Broad came out of the Ashes with a semblance of pride, leaving the door open for the likes of Danny Briggs, Jos Buttler, Chris Jordan, Ravi Bopara and Chris Woakes to stake their claims in the one-day format.
Australia have recalled dynamic opener David Warner while captain Michael Clarke, who missed the one-day series in India last year with chronic back trouble, also returns.
But the tourists have been given some respite from Ashes man-of-the-series Mitchell Johnson, with the left-arm paceman rested for Melbourne after terrorising the tourists with 37 wickets during the Ashes.
Bailey was one of the few Australians to underperform during the Ashes and will be looking for some big scores to rescue his Test spot for next month's three-Test tour of South Africa.
Teams:
Australia: Michael Clarke (Capt.), David Warner, Aaron Finch, Shane Watson, George Bailey, Glenn Maxwell, Brad Haddin, James Faulkner, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Clint McKay, Xavier Doherty.
England: Alastair Cook (Capt.), Ian Bell, Joe Root, Gary Ballance, Eoin Morgan, Ravi Bopara, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Tim Bresnan, Chris Jordan, Boyd Rankin.
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