Durham Head Coach Jon Lewis says he is excited about “a busy week” ahead in Abu Dhabi but has confirmed a late change to the travelling squad.
The players fly out for the season’s traditional curtain-raiser against the MCC on Wednesday but will be missing long-serving allrounder Gareth Breese. The 38 year old was forced to pull out of the trip due to an illness in the family, with promising batsman Rammy Singh added to the travelling party as his replacement. The County Champions take on the MCC at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium on the 23rd of March but will do so without Breese.
“Unfortunately, Gareth has had to pull out this morning due to a family illness” Lewis told the official website. “It’s sad for him but it gives an opportunity to Rammy Singh.”
Singh, a 21 year old former Gosforth High School pupil, has made just one first class appearance for Durham but has been a regular performer for the 2nd X1. Lewis believes the experience of travelling with the squad to Dubai will prove invaluable “Rammy has just come back from a couple of months in Sri Lanka where he had some decent practise, so to go back inside at this stage would probably not be great for him. The opportunity to stay outside and keep working on his game is ideal”
Despite a late change to the plans, Durham’s Head Coach is excited about the trip to the Middle East. “Getting out there and getting on with the cricket is what we’re looking forward to” he said. “It’s going to be a busy week. It’s a strong MCC side so it’s going to be a challenge for us and we’re getting our first taste of grass cricket since the end of last season so it will be tough, we’re going to have to adapt quickly, but it’s a great opportunity.”
Stay tuned to the official website and our official Twitter page for lots of updates on Durham’s trip to Abu Dhabi
Durham squad:
Mark Stoneman,
Keaton Jennings,
Scott Borthwick,
Michael Richardson,
Gordon Muchall,
Phil Mustard,
Stuart Poynter,
Rammy Singh
Mark Wood,
Ryan Pringle,
Usman Arshad,
Jamie Harrison,
Chris Rushworth,
Graham Onions,
Ryan Buckley,
Paul Coughlin.