Vaughan's looking for the perfect mix

A five-man attack has to be the way forward for Michael Vaughan's team in the near future but that either means restoring Andrew Flintoff to his old spot at No6 or finding a wicketkeeper capable of scoring regular runs.

Neither option has been taken, with England hoping they can somehow repair the damage done at Headingley by recalling Paul Collingwood to the middle order and relying on Ryan Sidebottom, who missed that 10-wicket drubbing because of a back injury.

But whatever the result of the npower Third Test, don't discount another round of changes at The Oval next Thursday.

If England lose this week - and, with it, the series - more heads are likely to roll. A draw will leave them in a position of having to gamble everything on trying to pull level in the final Test; a win could encourage them to be bold, especially if Flintoff has proved himself to be an allconquering all-rounder all over again.

Flintoff, as ever, is the key. Bowling 40 overs at consistently good pace during South Africa's first innings at Headingley has eased concerns about that ankle injury which kept him out of the Test team for 18 months. And an increasingly confident innings of 38 on the final afternoon in Leeds suggested he may be finding his feet again as a batsman.

"It was encouraging," said Vaughan. "You don't want Fred to be bowling 40 overs every week because of what he has gone through with his ankle. But although we will be the first to admit he wants a big wicket haul, his bowling looked threatening at Headingley.

"And I felt his performance with the bat, certainly in the second innings, got better and better. The time he had in the middle will have done him the world of good."

Vaughan is hoping that Collingwood's medium-pacers could be handy at Edgbaston but it does not look a long-term answer, certainly not with next summer's Ashes series in mind.

Playing wicketkeeper Tim Ambrose at No6 at Headingley was almost as big a gamble as calling up Darren Pattinson. And it didn't work any better.

The Warwickshire gloveman should feel more at home this week. But dropping down two places to No8 makes him increasingly vulnerable, opening the door for either a specialist keeper - if his form behind the stumps starts to fail - or a rival (like Matt Prior) who might be able to bat in the top six at Test level.

"We had the option of going with five bowlers here but we felt depth in batting would help," said Vaughan. "Colly knows he needs to start scoring runs, as a few of us do, but it's good to have him back in the ranks."

Having averaged below 36 since scoring a century against the West Indies at Headingley last year, Vaughan is another who requires a big score.

"I don't feel under any extra pressure," he said. "I've always had these kind of blips in form and come through them. I'm confident I can come through this one."

The England player who looked to be in better batting touch than any of his colleagues is not even playing at Edgbaston.

Stuart Broad's unbeaten 67 was the latest in an encouragingly long line of impressive innings but Vaughan and coach Peter Moores are right to rest him. Broad has been playing principally as a bowler - and the wickets simply will not come at the moment. But this is only a small hiccup in the 22-year-old's career and it is not beyond the realms of possibility that he could soon become a genuine No6 all-rounder.

"We've all seen what a good cricketer he is, and will be, for England," said Vaughan. "His batting is very consistent and I've no doubt he will climb the order eventually. But I think it's the right time to take him out of the team.

"He's bowled a lot of overs and started to look a little bit jaded."

England should need no incentive to rebound from their Headingley horror show. But, just in case an extra spur was required, South Africa captain Graeme Smith may have obliged by rubbing salt in still open wounds. Smith, who faced a fitness test on his sore back this morning, has expressed surprise at the make-up of Vaughan's team here, suggesting the Pattinson issue may have been used as an excuse for England's failings in the Second Test.

"I don't really see how one guy making his debut can affect the dressing room that's been together for so long," said Smith, who expected the hosts to play five bowlers this week.

"Players are experienced enough these days to be able to deal with these little things."

And with regard to the inquests that followed Headingley, Smith talked of the "indecisiveness around the England leadership", adding: "No-one is taking responsibility for it (Pattinson's selection) which surprised me a bit."