Warks postpone overseas plans

New Zealander Chris Martin will not return as overseas player - at least for now

Warwickshire are to start the domestic season without an overseas player after the retirement of leg-spinner Ian Salisbury forced a rethink of their plans.

The county had been contemplating bringing New Zealand paceman Chris Martin back to Edgbaston for a second season.

But Salisbury’s decision to hang up his spikes and return to Surrey as second XI coach has led Warwickshire director of cricket Ashley Giles to hold fire on his plans.

“We’ve decided that we won’t be having an overseas player at the start of the season,” said Giles. “Ian Salisbury’s retirement has changed things and we want to see how things go and not rush into things.

“We have decided that we want to keep our options open, to have a good look at what might be out there and to assess how things go in the early week of the season.

“It will give us an opportunity to decide that whether we do need to go for an overseas player and, if so, what we need.”

Warwickshire have only one experienced spinner in Ant Botha.

Meanwhile, captain and batsman Ian Westwood flew home early from the pre-season tour of South Africa after suffering a recurrence of a wrist injury he sustained last summer.

Westwood is seeing a specialist to decide on what further treatment will be required.

Giles said: “Ian is obviously very disappointed but it is important to get a full assessment of the injury as soon as we can.

“As the captain, Ian is a vital member of the squad which is why we need to get him seen to so we know what we are dealing with so close to the start of the season.”