Director of Cricket Mick Newell will wait and see if Paul Franks can cope in match conditions before deciding whether the all-rounder should have an operation on his ankle.

The 28-year-old has been troubled by the injury since before the start of the Twenty20 Cup and despite two cortisone injections, the problem has still to settle down.

Newell said: “The injury just won’t go away and if it doesn’t improve then Franksie will need surgery.

“But we need to see if he can bowl with the problem and get through a game before we make that decision, and the aim is for him to play in an unofficial friendly for the Second XI next week and see what happens.”