Thorpe comeback may be on hold

Graham Thorpe may be forced to wait a while longer to make his return to Test cricket, as England's selectors are expected to resist the temptation for wholesale changes ahead of the third npower Test against South Africa at Trent Bridge next week.

Thorpe has been beset by marital problems for the past year and has not played a Test since July 2002, against India at Lord's. On that occasion, he cut a distracted figure in an otherwise victorious side and failed twice with the bat before taking a temporary break from all forms of cricket. He was subsequently selected for England's tour of Australia, but withdrew at the last minute after admitting he was not mentally prepared for such an arduous trip.

He has since returned to the form and frame of mind that made him England's best batsman for much of the past decade, but Thorpe's return to Test cricket is far from guaranteed. A back spasm ruled him out at Lord's, but Michael Vaughan, Nasser Hussain's successor as captain, is said to be wary of leaning too heavily on England's old guard. The presence of Thorpe, Hussain and Alec Stewart in the same side might be considered a retrogressive step.

Hussain, whose appetite for the game had been in question since his resignation, answered his critics with a battling 61 at Lord's and a fabulous unbeaten 161 for Essex in the National League last week. And though Stewart's place remains in jeopardy after his less-than-mobile performance behind the stumps at Lord's, the retirement of Darren Gough may have saved his place for the time being. England cannot afford to dispense with all of their experienced players in such an unseemly rush, and Chris Read should therefore be told to wait his turn.

"All selection meetings are important but this is one of the most important we have held in quite some time," admitted David Graveney, England's chairman of selectors. "We have some big decisions to make and we also have to find a line-up capable of improving on our performance during the last Test at Lord's."

One of the biggest decisions will be the identity of Gough's replacement. Two of the likeliest lads, Matthew Hoggard and Richard Johnson, are suffering from injuries, so James Kirtley will probably make his first Test appearance after being 12th man for four matches in succession. James Ormond, who has 41 wickets at 26.80 this season (including a hat-trick against Sussex last week) is also on the brink of a recall, while Gareth Batty's offspin and handy lower-order batting is sure to earn a mention in dispatches.

England's batting, the Thorpe saga notwithstanding, is equally problematic. A tough decision needs to be taken on Anthony McGrath, who grabbed his opportunity with successive half-centuries against Zimbabwe, but has been palpably out of his depth against South Africa. Among the possibles are Ed Smith, Kent's man of the moment, who managed just 7 against the South African tourists at Canterbury yesterday, and his team-mate Robert Key, who has his opportunity to impress today.

Possible squad Michael Vaughan (capt), Marcus Trescothick, Mark Butcher, Nasser Hussain, Anthony McGrath, Rob Key, Alec Stewart (wk), Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles, James Ormond, Steve Harmison, James Anderson, James Kirtley.