Bresnan barred from Headingley showdown

Alastair Cook, Ravi Bopara and Matt Prior have all been made available for today’s quarter-finals by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

All three were involved in the first Test against South Africa at The Oval.

Bopara and Cook are in the Essex squad to face Somerset in a 4.15pm start at Taunton. Prior is free to play for Sussex in their home tie against Gloucestershire which gets under way at 7.10pm.

But while the batsmen have been given the chance to represent their counties, England have exercised more care over their bowlers, including Bresnan, who have been made to toil for long periods by the Proteas.

Nottinghamshire will not be able to call on Stuart Broad or Graeme Swann for their meeting with Hampshire.

Two players aiming to disprove the theory that Twenty20 is a young man’s game will be Somerset’s Marcus Trescothick and Alfonso Thomas.

Somerset captain Trescothick, 36, required ankle surgery after being taken off during the County Championship game against Nottinghamshire in April.

He only made his comeback in the CB40 on Sunday and managed 15 runs in his side’s eight-wicket win over Durham.

“It was a really tough test for the ankle and it got a little bit stiff but I feel really confident,” said Trescothick ahead of today’s encounter.

“It’s nice to be back out there. It’s been a long time sat on the sidelines just watching.”

In his absence, Thomas, 35, has been Somerset’s stand-in captain throughout the group stages and they are aiming to reach a fourth consecutive finals day.

Thomas was the leading wicket-taker in both the 2009 and 2010 tournaments, and even held talks with Cricket South Africa about the possibility that he might make himself available for World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka, having made just one solitary T20 international appearance in Johannesburg more than five years ago.

Thomas decided against a U-turn for family reasons and to concentrate his efforts on Somerset.

Scottish Saltires’ CB40 fixture against Durham on August 5 has been moved to Uddingston CC with the Grange in Edinburgh unavailable because of flood damage.