The Worcestershire squad have been reunited after playing in all areas across the globe this winter and gearing up – weather permitting – for a return to outdoor training.
The players are scheduled to be put through their paces on Monday at Kidderminster’s Chester Road ground for a week ahead of the pre-season fixtures if the elements allow.
Dillon Pennington, Gareth Roderick, Adam Finch, Ben Gibbon, Pat Brown Taylor Cornall, Henry Cullen and Kashif Ali have ended their spells abroad in Australia, South Africa and Pakistan this winter.
Jack Haynes and Josh Tongue are back at New Road after being part of the England Lions tour of Sri Lanka.
They will link up with the group of players, including Club Captain Brett D’Oliveira, Jake Libby, Joe Leach and Ben Cox, who have been put through their paces at Malvern this winter before spending a week training in Desert Springs.
Worcestershire Assistant Head Coach, Kadeer Ali, said: “It’s brilliant to get outside and was fantastic that the lads who didn’t play abroad were able to go to Desert Springs for a week, become accustomed to outside and batting on grass.
“A lot of lads have been away, so hopefully, the transition to being back outdoors will be smooth and pretty quick.
“More than anything, everyone is looking forward to getting together as a squad because lads have not seen each other much this winter for the first time in two or three years.
“Everyone is buzzing to come back and start training together and really start the season well. Pretty much everyone is back now. It’s great to see everybody.
“Hopefully, we can a good three or four weeks leading into the first game.”
The opening friendly is a T20 doubleheader against Gloucestershire at Bristol on Monday, March 20.