ASHES IS MAKE OR BREAK FOR ME; Vaughan: I must play to save England career.

Byline: BY MARTYN BLAIR

FORMER England captain Michael Vaughan admits he probably needs to regain his place for this summer's Ashes to stop his international career coming to an end.

Vaughan memorably captained England in their last home series against Australia in 2005, leading a side which won the urn for the first time in 18 years.

But 2008 brought a stifling loss of form, and the Yorkshire batsman eventually relinquished the captaincy in a tearful press conference last August.

He has not played for his country since, following an unsuccessful attempt to play his way into form in county cricket at the end of last season, but still wants to add to his 82 Test caps.

Nevertheless, he concedes that at 34 years old the visit of Australia may be his last opportunity.

Asked if his England career would end if he did not line up against Ricky Ponting's side, he said: "Probably, yes.

I'll be honest, if I don't play against Australia that will probably be it.

"But my goal is to try and play. Whatever happens, I'll carry on playing for a bit - because I love the game, love the dressing room. There's not many better ways of earning a living than playing cricket.

"We all want to win the Ashes. I, like many players in the county game, want to be part of that lucky 11 who walk out for the first Test. If not, there's a Test at Headingley; I've never played against Australia at Headingley, so I'd love to be there for that."

Vaughan believes the national selectors were right to leave him out of the party which is in the West Indies - but insists he will soon be challenging hard for a spot in the team.

"I'm 34 but I feel very fit. Most people write you off at that age but I feel like I've had a new lease of life.

"It was the right decision not to go (to the West Indies). I've loved every minute of not having to think about playing - but now I'm looking forward to getting out there.

"I still have that burning desire - and if you have that, you're fresh and mentally strong, then you have a great chance of achieving your goals."

Vaughan had spoken earlier about his decision not to put his name forward for the Indian Premier League auction.

He chose not to include himself on a list of 20 England players who have made themselves open to offers on February 6, when the eight franchises will decide whether to bid for their services for the tournament running from April 10 to May 29.

Most England players on that list are expected to miss out on deals but a player of Vaughan's stature may have interested one of the teams - despite his relatively modest one-day record.

He said: "I want to get back into the Test team - and the only way to do that is to start the season with Yorkshire, play two or three four-day games and hope to get a couple of hundreds and put myself in a position to get myself selected for that first Test against West Indies in May."

England's other potential IPL recruits face an anxious few days before they discover whether they are likely to interest the eight franchises at next week's player auction. The IPL have received a list of 110 interested overseas players who will be competing for a maximum of 16 places among the eight franchises.

The decisions made by the franchises will result in a shortened list of about 30, which will be put forward for the auction in a Goa hotel next Friday.

England's two most charismatic players - Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff - are almost certainly going to earn massive contracts, but the remaining 17 registered England players face an uncertain battle with other leading world cricketers.

CAPTION(S):

ASHES TARGET: Michael Vaughan