FORMER Hampshire captain Mark Nicholas believes John Crawley will struggle to stay involved with England this summer - and that's great news for his county.

Nicholas insists he wants Crawley to stave off stiff competition for a middle-order slot - especially when the five-Test series against South Africa gets under way on July 24.

But he said: "I very much doubt that he will because of the pressure to pick some of the emerging youngsters."

The two Tests against Zimbabwe in six weeks will almost certainly be used as a platform for the likes of Robert Key, Ian Bell and James Troughton to cement a place.

And, with Crawley already out of the one-day reckoning, Nicholas, pictured above, predicted: "I think John will be available for Hampshire until July and maybe beyond - and that's why I'm delighted with his appointment as captain.

"If John's in consistently golden form later in the summer, he may well play for England - I'd certainly like to think so.

"But Hampshire are now in good hands. They've got good armoury, commitment and leadership and I'll be very surprised if they don't get promoted in both forms of the game.

"I really do believe they are going to be strong candidates."

So much so, in fact, that Nicholas, a non-executive director of Rose Bowl plc, has also backed the county's decision to scrap the vice-captain's role.

The 45-year-old added: "I think that position is hugely overrated. If the captain is away, there are plenty of people who can do the job. Will Kendall is one but the captain just needs a few heads around him to give a different perspective.

"Will has a really good cricket brain and John values that but the days of the vice-captain being next in line to skipper are gone.

"Nowadays, cricket teams are far more collective. People talk more openly, both young and old, and the coach doesn't just chuck a few balls at you before play - he's a fully-involved character."

MARK NICHOLAS FEATURE: SEE HAMPSHIRE CRICKET SUPPLEMENT FREE INSIDE TODAY'S DAILY ECHO.