A knee injury to the England batsman will see him miss the third Test in New Zealand.
England have suffered a blow ahead of the third and final Test against New Zealand as powerful batsman Kevin Pietersen is ruled out with a knee injury.
Pietersen first struggled with the injury in a pre-tour match in Queensland and was off the field of play for an hour-and-a-half in the second Test being treated.
This will not only be an unwelcome result for England but it is also a blow for the Delhi Daredevils as the injury will also rule him out of the coming IPL season, which starts on 3 April.
Scans on Pietersen’s knee in the build-up to the third Test in Auckland showed that there is bruising to the bone in his right knee and possibly cartilage damage to the kneecap.
The 32-year-old will now fly back to the UK to see specialists and receive further treatment, although the initial assessment is that the rest and rehabilitation that will be needed will see the batsman out of action for six to eight weeks.
As a result Pietersen has been withdrawn from all cricket for the foreseeable future and will definitely miss the rest of the New Zealand tour and the IPL.
Pietersen had struggled with the bat in the first Test against the Kiwis, but he then went on to score 73 in the second, rain-interrupted Test in Wellington.
England and the Delhi Daredevils will certainly miss the experience and quality that the South African-born batsman brings to the side.
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