Somerset are set to pick Shoaib Bashir for their second match of the County Championship season after he was left out in the opening round last week. The club announced the signing of Migael Pretorius, the South African seamer, on Tuesday but have hinted that they will include Bashir when they face Surrey on Friday.
“He would have been handy today,” Lewis Gregory, Somerset’s captain, said of Bashir after the final day of their rain-affected draw against Kent. “We made a decision to go with an extra seamer… I’m not sure it would have made a huge amount of difference but yeah, he definitely would have been nice to have.”
With Jack Leach unlikely to play this month following knee surgery, Bashir looks set for a recall at The Oval. “We’ll look to see what the wicket is [like],” Gregory said. “He’s obviously a highly skilful bowler and if we’re playing more of a full game – which, with the weather, it looks pretty good – I imagine we’ll see him in the side.”
Brendon McCullum, England’s Test coach, said it would be “slightly mad” if Bashir and his international team-mate Tom Hartley were not given first-team opportunities by their counties this season after their success in India earlier this year, and Somerset have said they are open to exploring a loan move for Bashir once Leach is available for selection again.
Somerset were also without Craig Overton at Canterbury, who Gregory said is “not too far away” from full fitness after back surgery in November, but hope to have their new overseas signing Pretorius available for Friday’s fixture at The Oval. He has signed for at least six Championship games, replacing the injured Will Sutherland.
“In his time with Durham last season, Migael proved that he can perform and take wickets in English conditions,” Andy Hurry, Somerset’s director of cricket, said. “He is a quality player and very driven, so he will certainly add value and depth to our attack. There is a lot of cricket ahead of us, so it’s vital that we maximise the options that we have available to us.”
Somerset are one of several counties waiting for teams to name their T20 World Cup squads before recruiting overseas players for the Vitality Blast. “We’re going to be patient and focus on Championship cricket,” Jason Kerr, their coach, said late last month, “and then in the next few weeks we can try to identify what our needs are and add some quality.”
