STEVE Rhodes admits that there is no need to panic despite Worcestershire struggling to find a way of ending their Frizzell County Championship losing streak.

The County's plummeting bid for promotion from Division Two received another hammer-blow when Northamptonshire landed a 137-run triumph at New Road on Saturday.

It was Worcestershire's third defeat to Northants in less than three weeks and their fourth straight Championship loss, despite holding a first innings advantage on each occasion.

To make matters worse, captain Vikram Solanki broke his right thumb and is likely to miss the four-day fixture at home to Somerset next Tuesday.

Head-coach Rhodes said 'home truths' were aired in the dressing room following their latest crushing loss, yet he revealed that the club's suffering squad are 'hurting' because of recent results.

His players have been given a three-day break to reflect on the slump in form before returning to training on Thursday.

"It was my view at the start of last week to give the players three days off and that's what they are getting," said Rhodes. "I'm quite happy with that.

"They will go away and think about what they need to do as individuals when they get back. A lot of these players have got a lot of pride and they are disappointed with the club's current form as much as myself and the supporters. They are hurting, but that happens when you go through a rough trot.

"There were some home truths said in the dressing room after Northants, but you have got to remain positive. We won't dwell on it. At some stage, we will come out of this situation."

Rhodes will wait on skipper Solanki after he suffered a hairline fracture to his thumb while in the middle.

The England one-day batsman re-quired an X-ray after being rapped on the glove by a sharp Ben Phillips delivery.

Although the injury is unlikely to sideline Solanki for a long period of time, Rhodes believes he will miss the Somerset clash.

Rhodes added: "The only good news is that it is a hairline fracture and it has not affected the joint. The right thumb is a problem because it is exposed more when batting.

"It will come good, but Vikram has got to rest it and allow the thumb to heal and knit back together. He may recover for the next game if he's lucky.

"I would be surprised if he was fit, but that does not rule him out."