vaughan return full of risk

Vaughan - would be a risky selection.

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By Dave Tickner

Michael Vaughan, who hasn't played Test cricket since last December due to his persistent knee injury, has announced his intention to return to the team for the third Ashes Test in Perth.

But should he?

Even if he was fully fit by that stage - which seems highly unlikely given that he will have just one warm-up match against Western Australia to prove his fitness - Vaughan's return could create as many problems as it solves.

Vaughan may have risen to the top of the world rankings during England's last Ashes series Down Under, but his form has been patchy ever since. Would he even merit a place in the side, with Alastair Cook, Ian Bell and Paul Collingwood already fighting it out for two middle-order spots?

His captaincy may have been inspirational last summer, and his place in England cricketing legend is assured, but you pick the captain from the XI.

At the moment Vaughan isn't in it.

This news from Vaughan has really muddied the waters, and can surely only unsettle the squad. If England are on level terms or better going into the third Test, then relieving Flintoff of the captaincy and ditching one of the top six for a player with barely a week's worth of cricket under his belt in 12 months seems sheer folly.

Vaughan has already had a couple of aborted comebacks in the county game. The rarefied atmosphere of a five-day Ashes Test is no place to take any risks.

There's simply no way for me he can prove his fitness in such a short space of time and with so little cricket outside the Tests.

The only way I can see Vaughan returning at Perth is if England's batting has failed miserably and the tourists are 2-0 down and on the verge of humiliation.

Vaughan's desire to return to the fold is understandable and admirable, and I sincerely hope to one day see him in an England shirt again.

But not this winter.

This England squad has all the ingredients to challenge Australia without abandoning everything after two Tests to rush back their skipper, however crucial he may have been to last year's success.