Yorkshire captain Darren Gough says an England recall for star batsman Anthony McGrath is not out of the question.

And Gough also believes that the Bradford-born 32-year-old could even make a late bid to play in November’s winner takes all Stanford Twenty20 match in Antigua which gives each winning player a cool £500,000.

“I hope he does, and I hope his captain gets a cut n’ all,” joked Gough after hitting the winning runs against Roses rivals Lancashire on Wednesday night at Headingley.

McGrath will be aiming to top score for the Tykes in a sixth successive 20-over clash when they visit Old Trafford for the reverse fixture tomorrow night.

After opening with scores in the 30s against Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, the vice skipper hit consecutive half centuries against Derbyshire and Leicestershire – including a competition best of 72 at Chesterfield.

He notched 46 against the Red Rose county on Wednesday, and has been the major force behind Yorkshire’s rapid rise up the North Division.

Gough continued: “He is an excellent player; he has been a top player for a long, long time for Yorkshire.

“For me he should have played a lot more for England. I think that a lot of it is probably to do with his shape, which is natural and he can’t do anything about.

“As a player he bowls brilliant, he is quick in the field and he hits the ball as well as anyone. I think that it is sad that people are only starting to talk about him now. He should still be in that England side. He has got amazing talent.”

McGrath played 14 one-day internationals and four Test matches for England between 2003 and 2004.

As for Gough, he was absolutely thrilled with his 20 from nine balls to clinch a thrilling two-wicket win over Lancashire.

The 37 year-old, who will be retiring from first-class cricket at the end of the season, came to the crease with 30 runs required from three overs.

“I rolled back the years,” he said before confirming his availability for the Champions League in September should the White Rose qualify.

“It was like 1994 all over again. I almost forgot what it was like to bat like that. Just to get the opportunity again to play like that with the bat was amazing. That’s why I have loved this game for 20 years. That’s the one thing that I will miss.”

Gough also responded to Lancashire captain Stuart Law’s comments about a trip to Headingley being the equivalent of a football match at Galatasaray.

He said: “It has been a joke for a while. They come to Galatasaray and we go to Fenerbahce.”