Somerset skipper Marcus Trescothick faces ECB ban
SOMERSET skipper Marcus Trescothick is facing a possible ban over his team's on-field conduct ahead of a visit from England and Wales Cricket Board disciplinary officials to Taunton today.
While Somerset, including out-of-form England captain Andrew Strauss, begin their three-day tour match against India, club officials will be presenting their case in the hope of seeing their captain, pictured, avoid a possible two-match suspension.
Essex skipper James Foster was handed a two-game ban last week after at least five instances of his players breaking various laws of the game over the previous 12 months. His county were also fined £5,000. Somerset have now been reported for committing five breaches in the past year, although it is understood three of those took place last season. And director of cricket Brian Rose, while eager to avoid pre-empting today's hearing – in which Somerset will be represented by four members of their cricket staff plus a legal representative – believes Trescothick's exemplary disciplinary record speaks for itself.
"There will be the chairman, myself, the coach, the captain and a legal representative," said Rose. "It's like getting a speeding fine – you get four or five and then you are up before the beak.
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"James Foster had a similar one last week but each case is slightly different, so we're hoping to present a good case. The Foster thing was a case of blaming the captain for the discipline, but I don't want to pre-judge what they say to Marcus. Let's just see what they say – but Marcus has got an exemplary disciplinary record."
Should the ECB hand Trescothick the same punishment as they did Foster – and it must be stressed that Somerset feel they have a very strong case – he would miss the CB40 clash at Lancashire and next week's home Championship match against Durham if the ban was enforced immediately.
Such a scenario would be a potential disaster for Somerset, who rely so heavily on the former England opener's runs in all forms of the game. So far this summer, the 35-year-old left-hander has scored six hundreds and a further seven fifties across the three different formats.
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