Gale fit to lead Yorkshire floodlit test (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Andrew Gale shoulder injury does not need injection after Yorkshire scan all-clear

5:50pm Wednesday 23rd May 2012 in Sport By Graham Hardcastle

Yorkshire have been boosted by the news that Andrew Gale does not require an injection in his shoulder, meaning he will captain the side in tomorrow’s Clydesdale Bank 40 match against Sussex at Hove.

Gale was expecting to miss the televised Group C floodlit encounter as well as Sunday’s game against the Unicorns at Scarborough. But after a scan on Monday, the left-handed batsman has been given the all-clear.

Yorkshire have won one and lost one of their opening two matches, the victory coming against Derbyshire at Headingley on Sunday thanks to impressive performances from Mitchell Starc and Gary Ballance.

A Jacques Rudolph century secured an impressive success over Sussex at Scarborough last summer but the White Rose county have not won a 40-over match at Hove since 1994.

Yet first-team coach Jason Gillespie is confident his players can buck the trend.

The Australian said: “They’re a very good team playing at home, so it will be a real challenge for us. But I’d like to think that if we keep our standards up, then we have a great chance of winning the game.”

Ryan Sidebottom has also been named in a 13-man squad, having been rested from the opening two group matches against Kent and Derbyshire.

Yorkshire were impressive with both bat and ball against Derby on Sunday – especially the latter to restrict the visitors to 219-8 after Martin Guptill and Chesney Hughes had shared 137 for the first wicket.

But they were just as good in the field and that is a facet of the game that Gillespie is desperate for them to get right.

He said: “I was really pleased with how we stuck to the task in the field. I thought our fielding was excellent by and large and our movement around the ground was really good too.

“I put a big emphasis on fielding, which is something we’ve worked pretty hard on since I’ve been here. It’s so important in this day and age. It really could be the difference for you at the end of the day.

“The philosophy is that if we work hard and smart at every facet of our game, we’ll do okay.”

Yorkshire team: Gale, Lyth, Jaques, Ballance, Root, McGrath, Brophy, Rafiq, Rashid, Sidebottom, Starc, Ashraf.