Ramps - a shoo-in for the Oval

Suddenly, everything has changed.

Ill-informed commentators (including myself) have been lining up all week to back Mark Ramprakash's England recall for the final Test. 'Ramps for England!' we cried with hearty gusto. 'How can the finest batsman in the land be ignored for such a vital game?'

But deep down, we knew that the hundred hundreds and the mind-boggling average and the nimble feet and the sheer damn romance of it all wasn't enough. Surely he would never seriously be in line for a recall, would he?

And yet, this evening, I would stake my house (if I had one) on Ramps walking out for England in the Ashes decider next week. The force is with him. The public is behind him. And, most importantly of all, the man himself is saying all the right things. 'The sort of occasion you cherish and savour' is exactly how you want your number three to treat a match of such magnitude.

This match was always going to be huge, but just imagine the public interest if Ramps makes a comeback. If England win, it will be the fairytale to end all fairytales. He must play.