Plagued by injuries throughout their Ashes campaign, England's rash of withdrawals has continued as they prepare for the Third Test against Australia at Trent Bridge.

Already lacking their first-choice middle order batsmen, captain Nasser Hussain, Graham Thorpe and Michael Vaughan, the home side will be without Yorkshire fast bowler Chris Silverwood, ruled out with a back injury.

More crucially, they may also lose the services of Alex Tudor, the Surrey paceman whose return to England colours after a two-year break has been greeted with much hope.

Tudor, 23, this morning experienced some stiffness in his side, with which he has had problems before. England will make a final decision over his fitness tomorrow. Meanwhile, the selectors have called up Richard Johnson, the uncapped Somerset fast-medium bowler, as cover.

Johnson, 26, has taken 37 first-class wickets at 23 apiece this season after joining Somerset from Middlesex during the winter.

In 1994, he became the second youngest bowler to take 10 wickets in a first-class innings (18.5-6-45-10 against Derbyshire in 1994), and is the last English cricketer to achieve the feat.

He was selected for England's 1995-96 tour of South Africa, but had to withdraw with a back injury. The previous winter he had been on part of the A trip to India.

England chairman of selectors David Graveney said: "We looked at every case but the type of bowler that we wanted here is one who hits the deck hard and takes the ball out from the right-handers.

"He (Johnson) has worked very hard and has begun to swing the ball a lot more. He is the right guy."

Johnson himself said he was, "very surprised because no-one gave me a warning I was on stand-by. I never gave up hope. I know that when I'm fit and bowling well, I'm in the hunt."

Talking of England's terrible run of injuries, which means that only six of the ECB's centrally contracted players will make it onto the Trent Bridge pitch, Graveney said, "We've certainly had more injuries than I've ever experienced. We've had a very high level of injuries and that is not an excuse. It is just a fact."

Captain for the Third Test, Michael Atherton, himself only leading the side because of Hussain's fractured finger, admitted: "It is not an ideal situation, but it is a fact of life - injuries happen."

With perfect timing the touring Australians, whom the home side must beat to retain any chance of wresting the Ashes from them, earlier named an unchanged line-up from the first two Tests.

© CricInfo Ltd.