By Paresh Soni

Vaughan looked out of sorts in the first Ashes Test at Lord's

One of the sorriest figures after England's crushing defeat by Australia in the first Ashes Test was Michael Vaughan.

Not only does the England skipper have to lift his team for the second round at Edgbaston but he also has his own batting form to consider.

Scores of three and four, and the manner of his dismissals - playing down the wrong line to essentially straight deliveries - set alarm bells ringing.

And it has been happening all too frequently of late.

For while England's collective stock has risen in the last 18 months, the captain's powers as a batsman appear to have been waning.

Vaughan has registered only four scores above 50 in his last 19 Test innings, with the 120 against Bangladesh at Lord's in May his sole century.

He has gone from being rated number one in the world to a lowly 28th.

The authority, footwork and shot selection which were the hallmarks of his best innings have also been lacking.

Frankly, he seems a pale imitation of the man who made three centuries in the last Ashes series.

Why is he struggling?

The start of his decline can be traced back to a few months after his personal triumph in Australia.

Nasser Hussain relinquished the captaincy in July 2003, ahead of the second Test against South Africa at Trent Bridge.

Vaughan was the obvious choice to take over, having impressed with the England one-day side.

But while the team's record has been impressive under his stewardship - 17 wins, five draws and only five losses - his own statistics have suffered.

Before becoming skipper, he averaged 50.98. As captain, however, that figure has dropped to 36.55.

The captaincy of an international side brings big demands and big expectations with it, while dealing with the media has also become a more time-consuming task.

Vaughan is not the first batsman to suffer in such circumstances in recent years - Sourav Ganguly's average fell from 45.54 to 37.03 when leading India.

Another factor in the decline has been moving down the order following opener Andrew Strauss' remarkable introduction to the international scene.

Vaughan's own star began to soar after he was promoted to the top of the batting line-up, and 10 of his 14 centuries have been made there.

VAUGHAN'S AVERAGE IN DIFFERENT POSITIONS As opener: 49.7 (31 Tests) Number Three: 39 (7) Number Four: 34.80 (17) Number Six: 36.50 (5)

But with Strauss and Marcus Trescothick performing so well during England's resurgence, the selectors are reluctant to disturb their opening partnership.

England have been able to carry an out-of-form Vaughan while those two have given them a solid start and the likes of Graham Thorpe and Andrew Flintoff have made valuable contributions below him.

But Thorpe has retired, while Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell are inexperienced at Test level.

The pressure on Vaughan has increased. It may not have been a pressing matter when facing the West Indies and Bangladesh, but against Australia there is no room for a passenger.

The England hierarchy insist there is nothing to be overly worried about, and the extra batting coaching he has received from Duncan Fletcher since the first Test paid off with a ton for Yorkshire against Kent on Sunday.