England opt for expediency as Russell gets the chop

JACK RUSSELL, who was hoping this week to become the fourth England wicketkeeper to have played in 50 Test matches, must wait until the winter tour before he passes that landmark.

In an anticipated move of expedience, it is Alec Stewart who will take over the gloves for this week's final Test at the Oval, although Russell has been assured by Mike Atherton that he can pack his kit and his paintbrushes ready to sketch the Victoria Falls and the geysers of Rotorua.

In the absence of a qualified all-rounder, the omission of Russell, the only one of the XI who played in the last Test at Headingley, means that England, needing to win the match in order to square the three-match series, can play a full hand of five bowlers.

To give themselves options, two spinners, Ian Salisbury, picked in the Leeds squad but left out of the final XI, and the uncapped Glamorgan offspinner Robert Croft, have been included. One of them will certainly play, with the possibility that should the pitch look exceptionally dry, both will get a game.

Once again Russell finds out it is a tough old game. Only nine months ago, in South Africa, when he was breaking the world Test record for catches in a match and came within a whisker for doing so in a series as well, it seemed that the world was at his feet, and he appeared to have consolidated that with a century at Lord's in the second Test of the summer against India.

Always, though, the balance of the side is thrown into question by a question mark against his ability to bat consistently for England at number six, and the absence of a classical all-rounder, in the manner of Ian Botham and before that, Tony Greig.

Stewart, of course, is an accomplished keeper in his own right (his versatility gave him his passport into the England ranks in the first place) and has kept wicket for England, with some success in 16 of his matches, not least on the last occasion, against West Indies, at Lord's last year when Raymond Illingworth unilaterally decided at the last minute that Steven Rhodes should not play.

Stewart's brilliant catch to dismiss Brian Lara when going strong in the second innings effectively won the game for England, and no one should be deceived into thinking that in wicket-keeping terms they are being short-changed.

However, there is strong statistical evidence to show that when he performs his dual role, his batting suffers. Overall he has a respectable Test career batting average of around 40; however, when keeping wicket it falls to 25 compared to 45 when not.

It is a significant difference, and the decision for him to revert to the double role now would have been even harder given that the resumption at Headingley of his position with Atherton at the top of the order coincided with his most authoritative batting for England since his two centuries in the match at Bridgetown three winters ago.

Even for someone as keen to please as Stewart would find the job of opening a Test match innings after a lengthy stint in the field perhaps not in the best interest of the side. But he is certain to succeed in persuading the selectors, including Graham Gooch who knows a thing or two about opening, that he should retain the job at least in the first innings should England bat first.

Even this is not satisfactory, however, for batsmen like to know their places and at Headingley a combination was found that saw England bat as a team for the first time in ages. Stewart's preference is to bat in the top three come what may, not least because he feels uneasy by the long wait, one reason for his poor batting record when keeping.

But to accommodate him, should he not open, would mean wholesale changes in the order and he might have to settle for a straight swap with Nick Knight at six and have counselling.

The pitch itself had a dousing from the weather last week, and more storms are predicted before the match begins. Despite high temperatures over the weekend, the chances of it drying out other than superficially are not good.

So England will probably retain the seam attack that bowled so variably at Headingley and supplement it with Salisbury's leg spin. The lucky seamer here is Chris Lewis who followed a grand start to the resurrection of his Test career with some appallingly naive stuff at Leeds on his comeback from injury.

However, although he was talked about at length, Darren Gough has not stated an overwhelming case for inclusion while Devon Malcolm was not even discussed at the selection meeting. Nor for that matter was Phil Tufnell, who in any case would not have provided a counterpoint to Salisbury, and so if a seamer gets omitted Lewis probably - then it will be Croft - "a good old fashioned off spinner" according to Illingworth who will make his debut.