Trescothick goes under the knife

England's absentee opener, Marcus Trescothick, has undergone a double hernia operation but is hoping to be fit for the start of the domestic season with Somerset.

Trescothick, who withdrew from this winter's Ashes campaign with a recurrence of his stress-related illness, was released from hospital in Manchester on Tuesday morning, but is hoping to be fit for Somerset's opening match of the county championship, against Middlesex at Taunton, starting on April 18.

Trescothick told his county's official website: "The recovery period is expected to be four to six weeks. My left groin was giving me pain at the end of last summer. At first it was thought that rest might prove a cure, but it didn't improve. It is common practice these days to operate on both sides with hernia surgery.

Trescothick was operated on by Dr Ian MacLennan, a leading expert in his field, and Somerset's chief executive, Richard Gould, said: "Marcus should be fully recovered from the operation by the time the season starts.

"It will be like having a new player as he has spent so much time with England in recent years, and the prospect of him opening the batting with Justin Langer is a really exciting one for us.