Two of England's forgotten men, Martin Bicknell and Shaun Udal, were today thrown a crumb of hope when they were mentioned by David Graveney, chairman of the England selectors, as contenders for the India tour places vacated by Robert Croft and Andy Caddick. Asked to name names in an interview on BBC Radio 5 Live, Graveney mentioned six players who "might be in the melting pot" if the selectors decided to "replace like with like". At this point readers may like to pause, find a pen and paper, and hazard a guess at the identities of the six (you'll never get them all).

Acknowledging that slow bowling in England was "a declining art", Graveney mentioned three offspinners who might replace Croft, all of them uncapped at Test level: Udal, 32, who played 10 one-day internationals back in 1994-95 before returning to relative obscurity with Hampshire; and two Gloucestershire players, Jeremy Snape, 28, who did well for England on this month's one-day tour of Zimbabwe but doesn't bowl much in the Championship, and Martyn Ball, 31, who has been on the county circuit for 14 years without getting any nearer to international recognition than the odd outing as a 12th man, in his role as an outstanding slip fielder.

Graveney then aired three more names as possible replacements for Caddick: Chris Silverwood of Yorkshire, aged 26, who has five Test caps also went on that Zimbabwe tour as a late replacement; Richard Johnson of Somerset, 26, who received several England calls last summer but never made it into the final XI; and, for once, Martin Bicknell, the Surrey swing and seam bowler who has been the best England-qualified user of the new ball for the past two or more summers, but who appeared to have been written off by the selectors at the age of only 32. His only Test experience came with three caps against Australia in 1993. However, as Graveney would know if he had being paying attention to Wisden.com at the weekend, Bicknell is having surgery this week on his Achilles tendons and is unlikely to be fit.

Conspicuous by his absence was the man Bicknell himself has recommended for the vacant spot - his Surrey opening partner, Alex Tudor.

Tim de Lisle is editor of Wisden.com

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