Miller rules out Trescothick return

LONDON: England national selector Geoff Miller insists he won’t ask Somerset batsman Marcus Trescothick to come out of international retirement for the deciding match of the Ashes series.

After losing to Australia by an innings and 80 runs in the fourth Test at Headingley, Andrew Strauss’s team must win the final match of the five-Test series to regain the Ashes. With star

batsman Kevin Pietersen injured, England have been struggling for

runs, leading to suggestions that Trescothick could be tempted back for one match.

He has been in superb form for Somerset since retiring from England duty due to a stress-related illness and the opening batsman had admitted that he would listen if England approached about a return for next week’s Test at The Oval. But Miller today ruled out that option, insisting that he will not try to change the 33-year-old’s mind.

“Marcus has many times said he’s retired from international cricket, and until I hear contrary to that, he will not be a part of the selection process,” Miller told Cricinfo. “He knows where he is, he’s really comfortable and playing really, really well, but

he’s retired from Test cricket so he’s not a part of our thoughts at this moment in time.”

But Miller admitted the selectors will consider 39-year-old Mark Ramprakash when they sit down to discuss the squad for the Ashes decider at The Oval. “Mark has not stated he’s not available for international cricket, so we will discuss that,” Miller said. “It’s not just my decision, it’s a team decision, and we’ll sit down as a unit. We have a consistency and continuity angle as far as selection policy is concerned and we try to stick to that as much as possible. But we do want to win this series, which is a matter of winning this game in a one-match situation, so it’s a very difficult equation.”