England's chief selector David Graveney has refused to be too confident over the fitness of Michael Vaughan and Ashley Giles for the tour of India. "The players themselves are making some positive statements but you've always got to be cautious," he told BBC Sport.
"Let's remember we were pretty positive about Simon Jones playing in the last (Ashes) Test and that didn't work out."
Both Vaughan (knee) and Giles (ankle) are likely to be included when the squad is named on Friday at 1130 GMT.
Skipper Vaughan missed the one-day series in Pakistan to undergo surgery, while Giles missed the final Test of the 2-0 series defeat.
But the veteran Test duo have both said this week they are confident of playing in the first Test against India, which begins on 1 March.
"Michael says he hasn't twisted or turned or done anything with spikes on but I've seen him in the last few weeks and he's pretty upbeat about it," Graveney explained.
 |  It's likely the wickets in India will be more responsive to spin but that also means they will offer some assistance to the seam bowlers |
All players will have to undergo fitness tests before leaving for India on 12 February.
Giles, who only managed to take three wickets in Pakistan, returned to training last week and must be back at his best if England are to win the three-Test series in India.
England must decide whether to retain veteran Shaun Udal, who endured a difficult debut Test series in Pakistan, or look at other spinners, like Northamptonshire's Monty Panesar.
But Graveney played down criticism of Giles and Udal, saying: "Some of the comments made about Ashley and Shaun were, I think, misplaced. The wickets in Pakistan were pretty flat.
"It's likely the wickets in India will be more responsive to spin but that also means they will offer some assistance to the seam bowlers."
Seamers James Anderson and Liam Plunkett, who took two wickets and hit a half-century on debut in Lahore, could be competing for a single place with Jones returning from ankle surgery.
Graveney was impressed by the performance of both men in the one-day series in Pakistan.
"They did very well, particularly in the last game when Freddie [Flintoff] didn't bowl," he added.
"Liam did exceptionally well in a series where we were behind the eight ball at various stages - he acquitted himself very well."
MMIX
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