LONDON: National selector Geoff Miller announced an unchanged 12-man England squad here Thursday for next week’s first Test against South Africa at Lord’s.

That left open the possibility of England fielding the same XI for six consecutive Tests, which would be a new world record.

England captain Michael Vaughan was included despite concerns over his fitness after he suffered a recurrence of his longstanding knee problem.

There was no place for all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who has not played Test cricket in over a year and who only recently returned to action following six weeks out with a side injury.

Flintoff, who struck 59 off 62 balls for Lancashire in their victory over county champions Sussex on Wednesday, can now expect more county action against Hampshire in a match that starts 24 hours after the first Test.

Significantly, however, this squad was for the opening Test alone, so potentially paving the way for Flintoff to return in the second of this four-match campaign at Headingley starting on July 18.

“Andrew Flintoff has worked extremely hard to be back playing some very good cricket for Lancashire which is a credit to his determination and patience,” said Miller at a Lord’s news conference.

“The selectors are keen to see Andrew get more overs under his belt and spend some more time in the middle before recalling him to the Test side.

“We’re all eager to see him back playing for England but there’s nothing to be gained from rushing him back until he has proved he’s ready to meet the demands of Test cricket,” the former England off-spinner added.

“There is a lot of cricket on the horizon and we want Andrew to be a part of that without jeopardising his fitness.”

England have won four of their last five Tests, all against New Zealand, with one draw whilst fielding an unchanged side. Last month they concluded a 2-0 win in the three-match home series against the Kiwis.

“The England Test side has won four of its past five matches and most recently the Test series against New Zealand so we feel there’s no need to change a winning formula,” said Miller.

“There have been a number of players pushing for selection in recent weeks which is extremely pleasing but consistency in selection and consistency in performance has led us to maintain the same squad for the first npower Test against South Africa.”

Third-placed England are currently just a point ahead of South Africa in the world Test rankings heading into this four-match campaign.

England squad for first Test against South Africa at Lord’s, July 10-14: Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook, Michael Vaughan (capt), Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Paul Collingwood, Tim Ambrose (wkt), Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Ryan Sidebottom, Monty Panesar, Chris Tremlett.