Somerset drop Abell as young captain seeks form

Tom Abell, Somerset's talented but beleaguered young captain, has been dropped for Somerset's Championship match against Yorkshire at Scarborough.

But Somerset remain adamant that the decision to have appointed him captain at 22 remains the right one with director of cricket Matt Maynard praising him as "a genuine leader of men."

Abell's season hit a new low point when he made a pair during Somerset's draw at Ageas Bowl last week - a match in which their top-order frailties were again exposed by two wholesale collapses.

Abell, now 23, is not the only batsman out of form, far from it - only the South African Dean Elgar averages more than 30 - but his decline is marked nevertheless, with 171 runs at 14.25. Even his season's-best 71 came during a stalemate against Middlesex on a docile Lord's pitch.

Somerset go into the Yorkshire match 29 points adrift of safety with half the season gone and Elgar now on South Africa Test duty. They will draw some hope from the fact that Yorkshire lack three senior batsmen in Joe Root, Gary Ballance and Jonny Bairstow, all on England duty..

Somerset's other alternative would have been to have rested Abell from the captaincy, and encouraged him to regain his form in the 1st XI, playing only as a specialist batsman, because not to do so has left their top six looking strikingly raw.

But that would have conveyed the message that their captaincy decision was a flawed one at this stage of his career, and they remain insistent that this is not the case. Their faith in him both short-term and long remains unstinting.

Abell, well respected but a less bullish individual than many who have made a success of captaincy at a young age, will now search for form in the 2nd XI without the added pressure of leading a struggling side. Tim Rouse, a 2nd XI batsman, replaces him with Lewis Gregory standing in as captain.

Abell said on the Somerset website: "It's been a tough start to the season for me and the team has to come first. The support that I've received has been incredible and hugely appreciated, as has the backing from the team and coaches."

Maynard added: "Every single person connected with the club, from the members and supporters up to the committee, are desperate for Tom to return to form and I have no doubt that he will do just that.

"He is an outstanding player, a genuine leader of men and as the old adage says: form is temporary but class is permanent.

"We'll be working hard with him in the nets and he'll be playing some Second XI cricket - I'm confident that he will be back in contention for First XI selection again sooner rather than later".

Abell had been full of optimism as April dawned, observing a Somerset season in 2016 in which they were pipped for the title on the final day and saying: "I am convinced we have the squad and the coaching staff to win the title."