BOLTON'S Ronnie Irani, Nasser Hussain's captain at Essex, says the England skipper is "devastated" after he suffered a broken finger in the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston.

The little finger of Hussain's left hand was broken by Australian fast bowler Jason Gillespie during the second innings of England's comprehensive innings and 118-run defeat and he has been ruled out of the second Test at Lord's, which begins a week on Thursday. As the search gets underway for a stand-in captain, Boltonian Irani said Hussain was upset to have been forced out of the side again having just recovered from a similar injury.

"I spoke to Nasser yesterday and although it's something of a joke that this sort of thing is happening regularly to him, he was devastated," said Wanderers fan and ex-Heaton and Lancashire star Irani.

"And now he's wondering, it's another three and a half weeks, and then is it going to happen again the first or second game he comes back? Personally the guy is devastated, particularly because it's happened again just as he was starting back out with England.

"And the way the Aussies played, it's as if he's been forced to leave the team in real trouble."

Despite the loss of Hussain, Irani is hoping England can get even with the old enemy at Headquarters - although he admits the situation does not look good at present.

He said: "I'm sure if Graham Thorpe can get fit and Craig White can hit back, you never know. But it's looking pretty average for us in the Test series at the moment."