Trescothick loss will hurt - Hughes

Merv Hughes, the Australia selector, believes England's loss of Marcus Trescothick is as big as Glenn McGrath missing two Tests in last year's series. McGrath was injured and withdrew from both defeats in England while Trescothick will not take part in the entire series after flying home due to his stress-related illness on Tuesday.

"Now England are in the position of having to cope with the absence of someone who was essential to their plans," Hughes was reported in the Herald Sun. "And they're going to find out just how much that hurts.

"I reckon the Poms could miss Tresco almost as much as we missed McGrath last year. Glenn bowled us to victory in the first Test but had to sit it out while England built up a 2-1 series lead."

Hughes said Trescothick, who has played 15 Tests against Australia, was an experienced batsman who could not be replaced easily. "He is an unorthodox player, someone with a fantastic eye rather than a classic technique," he said. "And he just loves to take the fight back to the bowlers. OK, the guy who takes his place, Alastair Cook or whoever, could prosper against the new ball. But an Ashes series is not where you want to test that theory out."