Rusty Thorpe gets call-up for second Ashes Test

Key batsman Graham Thorpe has been included in England's patched-up squad to take on Australia in the second test, despite not having played for six weeks.

Thorpe, struggling with a tight calf since playing in the second test against Pakistan in early June, was named on Sunday in a 14-man squad for the match at Lord's which starts on Thursday.

Yorkshire fast bowler Chris Silverwood was also included in the squad, earning the nod over Surrey's Alex Tudor.

With captain Nasser Hussain having broken a finger in the first test and number three batsman Michael Vaughan sidelined again with knee trouble, England have opted to recall Thorpe despite his lack of match practice.

He returned to the nets only on Thursday after seeing a specialist.

"We're obviously delighted that he seems to have recovered from a pretty serious calf injury," chairman of selectors David Graveney told Skysports.com TV on Sunday.

"The lack of cricket is something we have to assess. Medically (England physiotherapist) Dean Conway will assess his overall fitness, whether he can get through a five-day game.

"Obviously the coaches will assess him from a purely cricketing point of view and whether it is unreasonable to ask him to go in against a top attack like Australia."

The left-hander is the one England batsman to average over 40 in tests and averaged 76 in the two-test series against Pakistan.

"You can do only so much away from the game," Thorpe acknowledged on Saturday. "It's a problem. I've just got to block it out. A lot of it will come down to survival instinct."

"There's no point in panicking about it. It's going to be tough.

"I'll try to gear myself up to face their four bowlers -- it's more of a mental thing."

England lost the first of the five-test series at Edgbaston by an innings and 118 runs.

RAMPRAKASH OPTION

Hussain's injury and the continuing absence of Vaughan also mean Mark Ramprakash is included again, while Usman Afzaal has kept his place despite a disastrous debut at Edgbaston.

Ramprakash was drafted into the squad for the first test as cover for Thorpe but was forced to withdraw with a hamstring injury.

The 30-year-old batsman, who joined Surrey from Middlesex this season in an attempt to revive his career, last played for England against West Indies at the same venue 12 months ago.

A fine technician, he has played in 42 tests but scored only one century and concerns over his mental toughness have persisted.

"Mark Ramprakash gives us another option if Graham is unfit together with the younger guys like Ian Ward and Usman Afzaal," said Graveney.

"He's played two one-day games off the back of a hamstring injury. Again Dean Conway will have to assess whether his overall fitness is okay for five days."

Nottinghamshire batsman Afzaal made his debut in the first test but managed only scores of four and two, surviving 15 deliveries in all.

Silverwood, a 26-year-old right-arm paceman, has played five previous tests, the last in South Africa in January 2000.

Graveney said Silverwood had been chosen ahead of Tudor because of fitness concerns over Tudor's ability to play for five days.

But he hinted that Silverwood was unlikely to be in the starting 11.

"He's support to the main three strike bowlers," Graveney said. "The squad is one thing, then it's a question of getting into the final 11."

Opener Michael Atherton captains the squad in Hussain's absence.

Squad: Michael Atherton (captain), Marcus Trescothick, Graham Thorpe, Mark Butcher, Mark Ramprakash, Usman Afzaal, Alec Stewart, Ian Ward, Craig White, Dominic Cork, Ashley Giles, Darren Gough, Andrew Caddick, Chris Silverwood.

Mail Cricket Editor