ENGLAND are facing an anxious wait to determine whether they face another dilemma over the balance of their side after all-rounder Andrew Flintoff emerged as a doubt for the second Ashes Test.

The 31-year-old Lancastrian reported soreness and stiffness during the drawn opening Test in Cardiff in his right knee, which was operated on earlier this year following an injury sustained during his stint playing in the Indian Premier League.

Flintoff was taken for a precautionary scan yesterday and will be further assessed over the next 48 hours before England name their line-up for Thursday’s second Test with Durham fast bowler Steve Harmison being recalled to a 14-man squad as cover.

But if Flintoff fails to recover in time for Lord’s, it will present major problems for England with the balance Flintoff provides as one of five specialist bowlers batting at number seven.

Stuart Broad is one option to move up one place to bat in Flintoff’s position, but after a disappointing display with the ball in Cardiff, England may be reluctant to saddle a young player with even greater responsibility.

Their other option is to include Ian Bell as one of six specialist batsmen, but that could dilute their bowling options and captain Andrew Strauss is known to favour five specialist bowlers.

Publicly England are playing down the seriousness of Flintoff’s problem, which was sustained during 12 hours and 24 minutes in the field while Australia batted themselves into a strong position in Cardiff, but with just three days between Tests they must be privately concerned.

‘‘I don’t think it’s a flare-up, it’s just a reaction to one of his old knee injuries but I don’t think it’s bad from what we can make out,’’ revealed national selector Geoff Miller.

‘‘It’s not disastrous but we just have to be very wary of it and monitor it and we’ve produced a selection to cover that.

‘‘Andrew knows how painful it is and whether he’ll be able to compete, but it’s a long series and we’ve got four more games to play so we’ve got to take that into consideration.’’ The selectors consider Harmison as a like-for-like replacement for Flintoff because of the pace and bounce he provides, which he demonstrated in dismissing Australian opener Phil Hughes twice for England Lions at Worcester in the build-up to the first Test, but presents a problem with the batting lineup.

Miller said: “We will need to consider all our options carefully when we come to determine the make-up of our bowling attack at Lord’s and the final decision will depend on our assessment of the pitch and the likely overhead conditions.’’ Flintoff was the most hostile England bowler on show during the opening Test and played a part in the dramatic success in saving the game, batting with Paul Collingwood for 91 minutes on the final day.

While Flintoff’s potential absence provides England with a dilemma, Harmison’s recall has been welcomed by Durham team-mate Collingwood.

‘‘Harmy has done very well this year,’’ he enthused.

‘‘When Harmy bowls and bowls a lot of overs he gets back to that kind of form that we know he can get into and that’s bowling fast and being quite ferocious.

‘‘We saw that Worcester last week and watching him there it seemed his accuracy was there and his pace was up and it looked like he had a lot of confidence. A fully fit and firing Steve Harmison is always good for the squad."

Squad

AJ Strauss (Middlesex, capt) Age 32 Tests 62, AN Cook (Essex) 24 44, RS Bopara (Essex) 24 7, KP Pietersen (Hampshire) 29 53, PD Collingwood (Durham) 33 49, MJ Prior (Sussex, wkt) 27 19, A Flintoff (Lancashire) 31 75, SCJ Broad (Notinghamshire) 23 18, GP Swann (Nottinghamshire) 30 8, JM Anderson (Lancashire) 26 38, MS Panesar (Northamptonshire) 27 39, IR Bell (Warwickshire) 27 47, G Onions (Durham) 26 2, SJ Harmison (Durham) 30 60.