Hussain keeps door open for Thorpe

Smoke alarms greeted Nasser Hussain's arrival in London's West End yesterday. The England captain had come to pick up his bespoke, off-field outfits from that most English of establishments, Alfred Dunhill Ltd of Piccadilly. "I'm sure we will hear a few more alarm bells along the line, we always do," quipped Hussain, who flies out to Australia today, a week ahead of his team, because his wife, Karen, is seven months pregnant with their second child and she will be forbidden from flying after the weekend owing to her condition. The baby is due in the middle of November, shortly before the second Test in Adelaide.

Hussain was clearly not happy yesterday with the two major developments since the Ashes tour party was announced – Graham Thorpe changing his mind and pulling out, and Darren Gough being reported as saying that he did not think he would be fit for the opening two Tests of the five-match series.

Of Gough he said: "It is disappointing to hear that at this stage." He later admitted he was similarly unhappy when he heard about Thorpe's decision not to tour, but Hussain refused to write off Thorpe's Test career, despite the troubled left-hander's late change of heart. "I would hope that he will be playing for England sometime in the future. But he will have to do a lot to show the selectors that he means business."

As for Gough, Hussain insisted that expectations of the fast bowler's readiness were not overly high. "When the side was selected we knew Darren would not be getting off the flight and straight into 100 per cent cricket. Darren is a pessimist and it may be like it was in the one-day series, when he turned up one day and said he wouldn't be playing cricket for a year, then the following day he came in and said he was raring to go.

"But we are a long way from the first Test. All the rehabilitation programmes and operations were put into action early enough, in the hope that everyone would be fit and available for the first Test."

Despite the injury worries Hussain was in ebullient mood. "I see no reason why we cannot beat Australia. And I expect everyone on my team and in the management team to be thinking nothing less than that."