Mahmood set for surgery
England pace bowler Sajid Mahmood is to undergo a double hernia operation next week.
The 25-year-old Lancashire seamer has been troubled by the injury since returning from World Cup duty two months ago and is expected to require a five to six-week recovery period.
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Surgery: Sajid Mahmood ruled out of second Test
His operation will take place on Tuesday, less than a week after his England and county team-mate Andrew Flintoff underwent ankle surgery.
Lancashire cricket manager Mike Watkinson said: "He has been having some discomfort since returning from the World Cup.
"Our medical staff decided we needed to find out the cause, and he will be having the operation next week."
Mahmood, who got through 27 overs in the LV Division One match which concluded against Sussex today, has not been hampered as a bowler, but has been struggling to a degree in the field according to Watkinson.
"England are aware of the situation," he confirmed.
"It will take five to six weeks before we can expect to have him back on a cricket field."
Mahmood's absence from England consideration will therefore continue until at least the start of the three-match Test series against India, starting at Lord's in mid-July.
England's pace-bowling resources are therefore further depleted for the remainder of the four-match series against West Indies and the Twenty20 and one-day fixtures to follow - with Flintoff, Matthew Hoggard and Stuart Broad already on the sidelines.
Mahmood has played eight Tests and 25 one-day internationals for his country, most recently in the Ashes at Sydney and against South Africa at Bridgetown, respectively.
