SOMERSET director of cricket Matthew Maynard has admitted the club are finding it tough to recruit a second overseas player at short notice for this year’s T20 Blast campaign.

New Zealand international Corey Anderson struck 81 on his debut but has not played since and, despite having jabs to try and heal a back injury, remains a doubt for this weekend’s home double header against Gloucestershire (Friday, 5.30pm) and Middlesex (Sunday, 2.30pm).

Speaking to the County Gazette, Maynard said: “We have been trying to bring players in, but there are very few options available.

“New Zealand are the one country who have a free spell, but a number of their players are either not eligible, playing in the Caribbean Premier League or have signed elsewhere.

“There’s also the issue of bringing someone in who has not been playing a lot of cricket – it’s never easy to come into a new environment and perform if you haven’t been playing.”

The absence of an overseas player has opened up opportunities for youngsters to impress, which Maynard sees as a positive factor.

“Seeing the emergence of these young players is exciting,” he said.

“We’ve been down the experienced route, but it doesn’t help with the athleticism in the field and our performance up at Middlesex was really impressive in that regard.

“People say T20 is a young man’s game - I still think having some experience, which we have in Jim Allenby, Johann Myburgh and Steve Davies, is essential but it’s great to give the young players an opportunity as they really back themselves without fear of failure.”

Two of those three experienced players, Myburgh and Davies, also require fitness tests ahead of Friday’s derby match, which could lead to Lewis Gregory continuing his role as a makeshift opener having impressed in the victory over Middlesex on Sunday.

“Lewis is a proper batsman and plays the short ball well, which is critical at the top, so it was great to see him seize that opportunity,” Maynard said.

Debutant Tom Banton, meanwhile, seized his opportunity behind the stumps at Uxbridge, removing Dawid Malan with a razor-sharp stumping down the leg side, though the youngster’s performance has raised questions on what this could mean for Ryan Davies.

The 20-year-old was first choice in all formats last season but has found opportunities limited this summer, with just two Royal London One-Day Cup appearances to his name so far.

Speaking about the gloveman, Maynard said: “Ryan scored a quick 30 for the Seconds the other day and we know he’s capable with the gloves, so it’s another headache for us as selectors.

“I was really impressed with what I saw from Tom Banton – sometimes you just get an opportunity and it’s up to the players to take it. We know we’ve got three class wicketkeepers on the staff but there can only be one of them in possession of the gloves.”

Another player to have impressed the coach is Craig Overton, who has responded well to being denied a promised England debut in June.

“It’s been fantastic to see Craig develop in white ball cricket this season – it’s taken him and Lewis Gregory a while to adjust to T20 but it’s bearing fruit now,” Maynard said.

“He’s a very determined cricketer. It’s not a case of if, it’s a case of when [he’ll play for England], so he’ll get another opportunity down the line and he certainly bowled very well against the England T20 captain on Sunday.”

The victory against Middlesex represented a change of approach at the toss for Somerset, who opted to bat first having chosen to chase in the first three group matches.

Explaining this, Maynard said: “Conditions dictate it – The Oval had very short boundaries so it was hard to gage what would be a good score, likewise at Essex.

“The only reason we didn’t bat first was that we were unsure what a good score was, whereas Middlesex was an easier decision to make due to the position of the wicket and the athleticism we had in the field to defend the total.

“At home we know what a good score is, so it’s more likely we’ll bat at home.”

Somerset go into the weekend with three points from their opening four fixtures, all of which have been away, and Maynard admitted his side were disappointed with the slow start.

“It was tough – against Essex I think we could have knocked off that 170 but we didn’t have that confidence within the batting group to go out and play freely, which is essential in T20 cricket – you can’t worry too much about consequences and you’ve got to back yourself.

“We had a good chat after the Glamorgan game and things clicked at Uxbridge – it was great to see the lads play with that freedom.”

Now back on home turf this weekend, the director of cricket is hoping to reward the sold out Taunton crowds.

“Our support is terrific, and we would like to give those supporters something to cheer – they want to see that we’re really committed and give it a go," he said.

“We didn’t quite do that last year in the T20s, but if we can mirror what we did against Middlesex then hopefully they can go home happy.”