DORSET have been rocked by a season-ending injury to new recruit Ben Walker after just one competitive match.

The all-rounder, who joined up with the Minor Counties outfit during the winter, ruptured his Achilles during their seven-wicket defeat by Cornwall in the Unicorns Trophy five days ago.

Walker opened the batting for Dorset at North Perrott and was forced to retire after pulling up during his innings.

He returned to bat with a runner down the order and made 30 before discovering the full extent of the damage following a scan on Monday.

Walker is expected to be out for around six months, ruling him out for the rest of the campaign.

County captain Chris Park told the Daily Echo: “Unfortunately, Ben pulled up and retired hurt on Sunday.

“He has ruptured his Achilles and is looking at around six months out. He came back to Minor Counties cricket after seven or eight years away and was looking to prove himself at the next level.

“He was really excited and keen to get started for Dorset this year. I was absolutely gutted for him.”

Park revealed Walker had been on the county’s radar for around two years before they eventually secured his services.

He made 29 at the top of the order in a pre-season friendly against Somerset Academy and was their second-highest scorer against Cornwall.

“At first, I think he thought he had pulled his calf muscle so it was credit to the guy and his mentality that he went back out to bat again on one leg,” added Park.

“It is a disappointing blow for him as a person and for us as a county because his addition was two years in the making.

“We started talking to Ben at the beginning of last season and things didn’t materialise for lots of different reasons.

“He had the winter training with us this year and started playing in pre-season.

“Three-day cricket was where we were going to see Ben’s talent come to fruition. He is a solid batter, bats for a long time and scores big runs in the Southern League.

“We wanted him as that experienced player in our top order in three-day cricket and, unfortunately, that is not going to be the case this summer.”

Dorset begin their Unicorns T20 campaign against Wiltshire at Bashley in a double-header on Sunday (11am and 3pm).

They make the trip to face Devon at Sidmouth a day later, with battles against Wales and Cornwall also scheduled in Group Four.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Park, who was not selected for the Cornwall match, returns to the squad under new limited overs captain Jigar Naik, although Ed Ellis is expected to keep the gloves.

Dorset are set to utilise the same squad for both fixtures, with Somerset’s Max Waller also named in their team.

Dorset: (from) Digby, Eckland, Webb, Ellis, McCoy, Naik, Park, Robinson, Waller, Wolstenholme, S Currie, B Currie.