James Harris to miss start of Glamorgan season with injury

James Harris made his first-class debut for Glamorgan at the age of 16

Seamer James Harris could miss up to the first month of Glamorgan's season as he looks to recover from a mystery groin injury.

The 21-year-old had to pull out of the England Lions winter tour and having to have a double hernia operation.

Harris is out of the opening LV County Championship clash with Leicestershire and possibly the games against Derbyshire and Hampshire.

"I'm still not fully fit to start the season at the moment," he admitted.

"I'm going to miss the Leicester game. It's very frustrating, but we're hopeful we will catch it soon and I won't miss too much.

"The groin is a hard thing to diagnose. The good thing is that I have had the hernia operation which is one benefit.

"It's not by any means career threatening. It's purely an over-use injury where it came about."

With Harris out, Graham Wagg and Huw Waters are likely to take the new ball in opener at Leicester starting on Thursday.

As well as the hernia operations, Harris has had a pain killing injection in a bid to ease the injury.

He added: "It came on at the end of last season. If you look at the 18 months I'd had leading up to the end of the season it was probably likely something was going to break down at some point.

"It has and it's snowballed a bit more than I would have liked. It has been a frustrating winter. I missed the Lions tour which I was desperate to go on."

Harris, who is the youngest Glamorgan player to reach 200 first-class wickets, admits that in the long-term the injury could be a blessing in disguise, having bowled a lot of overs since making his debut as a 16-year-old in 2007.

"In my mind at the moment I'm distraught that I missed a winter's worth of cricket and a Lions' tour," he said. "In the future I think it will be fantastic. It is probably just what I needed.

"My body was very sore come the end of last season. I think in years to come this injury might be a blessing to be honest."

Despite missing the pre-season games and the start of the campaign Harris says the mood in the Glamorgan camp is very optimistic about 2012.

"It's the Chinese year of the Dragon which the boys are jumping on and we are very, very hopeful," he said.

"There are boys pushing towards higher honours and we are pushing for trophies. There is no reason why we can't win a trophy this year.

"The t20 finals are being played at the Swalec Stadium. So there is no reason why we shouldn't be playing in that. And in the Championship we are definitely looking to get promoted."

Glamorgan squad: G Rees, S Walters, W Bragg, B Wright, J Allenby, M Henriques, M Wallace (capt), G Wagg, R Croft, D Cosker, H Waters, M Reed.