The Bears return to action, hosting Essex in the County Championship at Edgbaston.

Warwickshire return to red ball action with more injury frustrations.

Having started the previous County Championship against Somerset, Tim Ambrose (stomach), Adam Hose (knee) and Rob Yates (illness) are all unavailable for Tuesday’s clash against Essex at Edgbaston (10.30am start).

It’s a further opportunity for someone to come in and make a big contribution.

Jim Troughton

Michael Burgess, with 29 first-class dismissals, is the ‘keeper-in-waiting, but there is an opportunity for some to grab those other spots.

Liam Banks, Ethan Brookes, Matt Lamb, Craig Miles, Ed Pollock and Alex Thomson will all be vying for a starting berth, each offering something different with the bat.

“Yes, it’s frustrating, but it’s a further opportunity for someone to come in and make a big contribution,” said Jim Troughton.

“We saw that with George Garrett a few weeks ago. He was given a start and bowled really well against one of the best batting line-ups in the country.

“Whoever comes in will have a chance to sustain their place for the final few games of the season and that should be plenty of motivation.”

The Bears host the league leaders having just fallen short against their promotion rivals.

Warwickshire dominated large parts against the experienced side and that should give the more youthful home side plenty of confidence.

“One session cost us,” reflected Troughton.

“We did a lot of good things and there were some strong individual performances.

“But the margins at this level are incredibly small. We’ve had to learn quickly this season and that’ll be the case when we welcome Essex.”

With three games to go, the Bears lead Nottinghamshire by 42 points.

The two sides meet next week before Yorkshire head to Edgbaston for the final game of the season.

A win this week would almost guarantee survival although that isn’t the message ahead of the match.

“We’ve just got to continue to concentrate on ourselves and not look at anything else,” concluded the head coach.

“We’re aware of the situation and it’s up to us to play our brand of cricket and win games.

“We’ve produced some strong performances this season and just not been able to get over the line.

“Hopefully we can this week.”

SQUAD: Patel, Banks, E Brookes, H Brookes, Burgess, Garrett, Hain, Hannon-Dalby, Lamb, Miles, Pollock, Rhodes, Sibley, Thomson.