Ball will miss the first Test against South Africa

Image courtesy of: Zimbio

England will be without pace bowler Jake Ball for the first Test against South Africa after he was diagnosed with a knee strain.

Ball felt pain in his knee while bowling in the second innings of Nottinghamshire’s County Championship match against Kent on Tuesday.

He subsequently underwent a scan on Wednesday and was unable to take to the field when play resumed after a rain delay.

With Ball set to be sidelined for two weeks, he will also miss the Royal London One-Day Cup final against Surrey at Lord’s on Saturday.

“Jake is naturally very, very disappointed to miss out on the final, having previously been made available to play by the ECB, particularly after missing out on selection when Notts beat Glamorgan at Lord’s in 2013,” Nottinghamshire coach Peter Moores said. “He’s given his all in this competition when he’s been available to us, and we’ll miss him for what will be a really tough game against Surrey.

“Jake is a very strong character and I’m sure he’ll bounce back from this. I know he’ll be wanting us to beat Surrey as much as anybody.”

England are scheduled to announce their squad for the first Test against South Africa, which begins on July 6 at Lord’s, on Sunday morning.