Marsh is your future, don't mess with him

You can see blokes with a bit of talent coming into the team. But they don't seem to have what it takes to guts it out when the going gets tough - and for that you can blame county cricket to a large extent.

The domestic game here is too soft. That's why the Test arena comes as a nasty shock. At county level, the batsmen have more or less got it made if they reach 20 and see off the two main bowlers. But, against a side like Australia, Glenn McGrath will be replaced in the attack by Brett Lee and Shane Warne takes over from Jason Gillespie. No respite there, then, and only players with real mental strength, as well as good technique, can hope to survive, never mind prosper.

Not even Marshy can work miracles, though. It is going to take a fair bit of time for good work done at the academy to reach the top level. But better late than never.

None of which, of course, is any consolation for England with tomorrow's Third Test at Trent Bridge in mind.

The selectors had to make a couple of changes after losing at Lord's, although one of them is well overdue.

Dominic Cork struggled throughout the oneday series because he wasn't swinging the ball or getting it down the other end with any pace. But England stuck with him when they should have cut their losses. Now Alex Tudor should get his chance in Nottingham.

Tudor is one of those English cricketers who looks good on first sighting and then disappears without trace.

Injuries - England's great curse? - have played a part in holding back Tudor. But there must be more to it than that and I wait with interest to see how he performs when the heat is on. I did see him recently, playing for Surrey in the Benson & Hedges Cup Final at Lord's. There's no doubt he has a fair bit of ability, with a bat in his hand as well as a ball, so perhaps this could be the start of something good.

England certainly need a boost. I think we can safely forget about them regaining the Ashes. But they can still get a fair bit out of this series by pushing Australia hard through the last three Tests and, in the case of the younger players, learning from the experience.