Graeme Smith forced to leave Surrey again due to injury

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/may/22/graeme-smith-surrey-injury-hashim-amla

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Graeme Smith has been forced to leave Surrey because of injury for the second consecutive May, and will again be replaced at The Oval by his former South Africa team-mate Hashim Amla.

Smith, who suffered a recurrence of a serious ankle problem early in his first season after joining the county on a three-year contract, now has a fracture in his right kneecap.

Alec Stewart, Surrey’s director of cricket, described the loss of Smith as “a huge blow”, especially after he steered the team to their first win of the season last week after a slow start in Division Two, and admitted he may be ruled out for the rest of the campaign.

But Amla has been signed as a high-calibre replacement in time for the game against Essex that starts on Sunday, and will stay for a month, although he will miss their next fixture against Worcestershire because of international commitments.