by Glenn Pearson

Kent skipper Rob Key looks set to win his fitness battle to be ready to lead the county at the start of the new season.

The 32-year-old missed the final month of last season after a recurrence of a wrist injury that required surgery during the winter.

The operation was a success and the captain has been back in the nets at the St Lawrence Ground in the last few weeks and able to bat.

Key (pictured) said: "I picked up a bat about two weeks ago and it just seems to be fine now.

"It’s a lot stronger than it was and it’s not as risky if I fall on it. If we had a game coming up in the next couple of weeks, I could play.

"It feels better now than it has done for the last two years batting."

The loss of experienced batsmen Joe Denly and Martin van Jaarsveld means Key’s availability will be crucial.

Only Michael Powell from Glamorgan has been signed so far to help fill the gap in the top order and Key is aware it’s an area of the squad that needs strengthening.

He said: "We are still recruiting as much as we can and be as smart as we can because it is not that easy these days.

"We need some seniority in the batting department. From a bowling point of view, we would take anything we could get."