Sammy in doubt for fourth Test

Darren Sammy, the West Indies allrounder, has picked up a groin injury to hamper his chances of playing in the fourth Test against England which gets underway at Chester-le-Street on Friday.

Sammy enjoyed an excellent debut against England in the third Test which England won by 60 runs, picking up 7 for 66 in England's second innings. He also added an entertaining 25 in West Indies' unsuccessful chase of 454, and it was during this innings that he injured his groin.

"It would be disappointing after he had such a good role in his first Test match," David Moore, the West Indies coach, said after a net session on Wednesday. "It will leave a bit of a gap after what he has done for us - but I am very hopeful he will play.

"Even though he only got one wicket in the first innings he was very disciplined with the ball and he is like that every time he takes it," Moore added. "In the field he's excellent as well, always moving around and encouraging the guys. With the bat he got a good ball in the first innings but in the second he really applied himself. I thought he was going to keep going and just might have had a dream game.

"Sammy is just a complete example of hard work. If you wanted to hold up someone to say 'this is what hard work can do' [then] he's your man."

Though England won the match to take the series, Moore was encouraged by West Indies' dogged performance. "Supporters on this tour have come up and talked about improvement in the side and the team spirit which is something you can really hang your hat on. "The joy that the players express when they're sharing someone's high points plus the support the boys were getting from the balcony when we were batting was excellent.

"The team spirit is really coming together, there is no magic formula, the guys are just working hard together and when you do that you start seeing results."