Reece Topley has been ruled out of the rest of England’s 2023 World Cup campaign after sustaining a fracture to his left index finger in their defeat to South Africa yesterday (October 21).

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Topley was hit on the finger in question while attempting to field a straight drive from Rassie van der Dussen off his own bowling. He received treatment on the field after copping the blow, and attempted to resume his over. The following ball he bowled was overpitched and hit for another four by van der Dussen, after which Topley left the field to seek further treatment. Joe Root bowled the remaining ball of his over – the seventh of the match.

After a significant amount of time off the field, Topleycame back on after the 30th over with a splint on his finger. He returned to bowl the 35th over and took the wicket of Aiden Markram, and also dismissed David Miller in his next over. However, after England collapsed in their chase of 400, Topley did not come out to bat when the ninth wicket went down for 170, ending the game.

In his post-match interview, England head coach Matthew Mott said of Topley’s injury: “It’s very much looking like it’s a crack. Certainly, that’s the early diagnosis but we’ll find out properly when we get the X-rays with Reece.”

With scans having confirmed the early diagnosis, Topley will now fly back to the UK and work closely with the Surrey and England medical teams on his rehabilitation. He is currently England’s leading wicket-taker in the tournament, having taken eight wickets in three innings.

England have not yet named a replacement for Topley in their squad, but Mott confirmed after the South Africa match that Jofra Archer was not available for selection, despite being with the squad in India as travelling reserve.

England’s next match of the tournament is against Sri Lanka on Thursday, October 26.

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