GLAMORGAN’S director of cricket Mark Wallace has spoken of the county’s frustration in recruiting overseas players this season.

The former wicket keeper from Crickhowell, who made more than 230 appearances for the Welsh county, took charge of cricketing operations at Sophia Gardens ahead of the current season.

But the side has been hit by injuries and even an international call up for their oversees recruits.

Having signed Shaun Marsh for the season, they were forced to turn to Marnus Labuschagne due to international commitments and subsequently a broken arm. And after signing brother Mitch for the T20, he returned unexpectedly to the international fold, meaning that the Welsh side then turned to Pakistani batsman Fakhar Zaman.

Shaun Marsh was able to play against Surrey on Sunday in his first game since breaking his arm before the Ashes Series began.

Marsh was out third ball, giving Imran Tahir a return catch, then the club’s second overseas player Fakhar Zaman, who has contributed only 100 runs from six innings at an average of 16, poked a simple catch to short third man as Glamorgan’s abysmal season in the T20 Blast continued at Sophia Gardens where they were beaten by Surrey with six balls of an entertaining game remaining

While Wallace says that the return of Marsh for his third spell with the county is a welcome boost, he admits to “frustration” at their bad luck this season.

“Shaun getting injured was a real blow, so just to have him halfway through the tournament, yes it’s better than nothing, but it’s still frustrating that, at the start of the season, we had Shaun coming in for the whole thing. These things happen and it throws everything into a little bit of chaos.”

While Marsh is a welcome addition to the squad, Glamorgan will sorely miss Marnus Labuschagne, who has been the county’s best player this season by some distance.

“It’s a blow in the sense that he’s been absolutely fantastic. His effect in the dressing room has been great as well. I think we’ll probably see him at some point in the Ashes series for Australia. But hopefully Shaun will come in and pick up where Marnus left off.”

But for an unexpected return to the international fold, Glamorgan could have fielded brothers in the same side for the first time in over a decade. When Marsh signed in March, an international call-up looked highly unlikely, after he’d lost his international contract.

“After we signed him, things started working for him and against us, so it was a risk signing him with the Ashes on the horizon.”

As Glamorgan prepare to welcome Shaun Marsh, his arrival will overlap with Fakhar Zaman’s final few matches for the side, the Pakistani having extended his stay by three matches. It has been an indifferent campaign for Fakhar Zaman, who has only managed one half-century in his five matches, with a 58 against Gloucestershire in Cardiff. He has failed to score twice. Ironically, one of his few impressive performances came with the ball, returning figures of 1-15 with his left-arm spin away at Hampshire.

“He’s shown us what he can do. He played well in the televised game, and showed a little bit with the ball the other night. He’s been pretty inconsistent, which really has been the theme of our campaign. We haven’t put in the performances the talent in our squad suggests we should.

“He’s had a good influence on the dressing room, the younger guys being able to play with players from different cultures and environments, which has been good. He’s still got a few more games and I know he’s desperate to put some performances in and scores on the board. It hasn’t quite clicked for him and that’s the risk with T20 I guess. It’s such a hectic format and you expect people to come in and immediately perform. But it is a bit of a lottery.”