Cricket: Josh Davey welcomed back into Saltires squad

The Saltires welcome Josh Davey back into the squad after some rehabilitation on a knee injury that curtailed his tour of Sri Lanka and the UAE in March.

Highveld Lions all-rounder Jean Symes will be the Saltires overseas player for the 2012 CB40 campaign and will make his first appearance for the Saltires on Sunday.

With Gordon Goudie and Safyaan Sharif still both recovering from cracked ribs, Derbyshire seamer Alasdair Evans and Matthew Parker will lead the bowling attack, along with the spin of Majid Haq and Symes with Moneeb Iqbal included as another option.

Upon announcing the squad, coach Pete Steindl said: “We feel that we have selected a well-balanced squad. The injuries to Goudie and Sharif have allowed an opportunity for Evans to once again join the squad, while also enabling Parker to further his development after his surgery last year.”

Meanwhile, Chris Gayle’s stand-off with the West Indies Cricket Board could be over after he turned his back on a deal with Somerset in the hope of returning to international cricket.

The big-hitting Jamaican left-hander has not played for his country for more than a year following a spat with the WICB.

But following talks with the WICB, the 32-year-old has reneged on his Twenty20 contract with Somerset in a bid to free up his availability for the West Indies’ tour of England starting this month.

Gayle has not played for West Indies since the 2011 World Cup, but he has been in outstanding form in the IPL. He is third on the tournament’s run tally and has scored 81, 87, 4, 86 and 71 from his past five innings.

Saltires Squad (to face Surrey on 6 May and Nottinghamshire Outlaws on 7 May): Fraser Watts, Ryan Flannigan, Calum MacLeod, Jean Symes, Josh Davey, Richie Berrington, Preston Mommsen, Craig Wallace, Majid Haq, Matthew Parker, Gordon Drummond, Alasdair Evans, Moneeb Iqbal.