England star Jonny Bairstow is reportedly unlikely to be fit for the upcoming tour of New Zealand in February, with the 33-year-old currently out of action after breaking his leg in what the ECB called "a freak accident whilst playing golf".
England were initially hopeful Bairstow would only miss the remainder of 2022, but according to a report from the Daily Mail 'the likeliest date for his return is at the Indian Premier League ' which is set to begin in late March.
As a result, Bairstow is also set to miss England's white-ball tours of South Africa in January and Bangladesh in March. He has been a key figure in England's Test revival under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.
In the summer, Bairstow bludgeoned a total of 589 runs from 578 balls in five innings against New Zealand and India, including four brilliant hundreds. However, after slipping over while playing golf in September, Bairstow broke his leg in three places and also dislocated his ankle.
Describing the freak injury, Bairstow told the Telegraph : "Normally when you slip you fall on your bum, which would have been fine as there's plenty of cushion in there.
"Except this time I tried to regain my balance, my left ankle turned right, dislocated and my weight went through my left lower leg. I heard it snap straight away."
In Bairstow's absence, Harry Brook has starred for England at number five, smashing three consecutive centuries against Pakistan in Rawalpindi, Multan and Karachi. And with Ollie Pope also impressing at number three under Stokes and McCullum, England have a real selection dilemma on their hands when Bairstow returns.
"I think Jonny is one of the best players, if not the best player in the world – he was this summer anyway," Brook said.
"So for me, he comes straight back in the side. Obviously I'm not selecting the team but he's such a big player for the side and he has been for so many years."
