Surrey are hoping that Shoaib Akhtar will be allowed to play in their two remaining LV County Championship first division matches against Hampshire and Nottinghamshire at the Brit Oval. The Pakistan fast bowler has been unable to make his debut in the championship match against Kent at Canterbury - the first day of which was washed out yesterday - after being refused entry into Britain because of visa problems.

Shoaib arrived at Heathrow at lunchtime on Wednesday and flew back to Pakistan in the evening, but Alan Butcher, the Surrey coach, said: “There is still an outside chance of him coming. He had the same visa he used when he played for Somerset, Worcestershire and Durham, but the regulations have changed and he is trying to get a different one.”

Matthew Nicholson, the Australia fast bowler, is eligible to play as Surrey's overseas player, but Butcher said: “He understands the situation, but he is flying back to Australia at the weekend and would not have been in the right state of mind.”

Graham Ford, Kent's South African director of cricket, has dismissed speculation that he is about to take over from John Bracewell as New Zealand coach. “It would have to be something tremendous to lure me away from Kent,” Ford said.

Play at New Road between Worcestershire and Warwickshire was abandoned at 2.30pm yesterday after rain saturated the outfield. Worcestershire announced that they have signed Dilhara Fernando, the Sri Lanka fast bowler, as their overseas player for the rest of the season. Imran Arif, who they recruited in July from the Bradford League, has been de-registered.