KENT’S build up to the 2003 county cricket campaign has been thrown into disarray following injuries to their skipper David Fulton and senior squad member Min Patel.

Fulton was struck in the right-eye while practising in the nets at the St Lawrence ground in Canterbury on Friday, at about the same time Patel was undergoing scans and tests for a back injury.

Fulton was taken to Kent and Canterbury’s accident and emergency unit just a stone’s throw from the ground and, after observations, was transferred to the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford where he underwent eyelid and tear-duct surgery on Saturday morning.

The prognosis for Patel will be clearer once he undergoes further tests but early indications for Fulton appear promising.

"At this stage we’re not sure how long David will be out for, but it’s fair to assume he will need time for rehabilitation," said Kent chief executive Paul Millman.

"Obviously we will do all we can in the meantime to get him well again and back playing as soon as possible. At this stage all the signs for a full recovery are looking pretty good.

Ironically, Fulton elected not to play in Kent’s pre-season warm-up match with Gloucestershire on Friday, opting instead for one-to-one net sessions.

He was practising hook shots against an electrically operated bowling machine when the accident happened, the machine firing a bouncer that hit Fulton on the batting helmet.

The dimpled plastic practice ball was delivered with such force that it squeezed through the protective face grille and hit the 31-year-old Lewisham-born player full in the face.

To make matters worse, the player Kent possibly favoured to replace Fulton as acting captain, former England spinner Patel, is also a likely long-term absentee.

The Indian-born left-armer has been suffering sciatic pain in the hip and may yet need surgery to cure the problem.

This brace of high-profile injuries has led to former England all-rounder Mark Ealham being handed the acting skipper's role. He will take charge for Kent's opening first-class fixture of the summer against Cambridge University starting on Friday.