WORCESTERSHIRE have received a double fitness boost with pace duo Josh Tongue and George Scrimshaw set to resume bowling this week.

The duo have recovered from a fractured metatarsal and back-rib injuries respectively and joined winter training in November.

They are ready to start their return-to-bowling programme and on course to play in March's pre-season tour of Abu Dhabi.

Tongue missed two-and-a-half months of the 2018 season but still finished with 40 County Championship Division One wickets.

The injury flared up again in the final game of the summer with Yorkshire and ruled him out of England Lions' trip to the UAE.

Scrimshaw was sidelined for most of last summer after his senior breakthrough in 2017. He returned for the seconds against Surrey at Kidderminster in September.

County head of sports science and medicine Ben Davies said: “Josh’s metatarsal fracture has healed.

"He started training in November and is starting back to bowling this week with a view to being fit for the tour so he will be fine.

“George is the same. He is starting bowling this week with a view to being fit on tour. He also started training in November, did the same as everyone else and is absolutely flying.”

Skipper Joe Leach continues to make encouraging progress after missing a large chunk of 2018 with a stress fracture of his lower back.

Davies said: “We are going to do one more scan at the end of January on his lower back and if that goes as we expect he will be starting building up bowling and will bowl on tour.

“It’s good positive news regarding Josh, George and Joe and it’s just about reintroducing the cricket now. Hopefully if all goes to plan we will be in a really good place for the tour.”

Young batsman Jack Haynes has had surgery after a foot injury ruled him out of England Young Lions' tour of Bangladesh.

Davies added: “Jack had an X-ray in London which showed a break of the fifth metatarsal.

"We sent him to a specialist in Cardiff and he was operated on on Tuesday.

"He will be non weight-bearing for a bit but should be fit around the start of the season.”