JOHANNESBURG, June 10: Neil McKenzie has been forced out of South Africa’s one-day squad to tour England after failing to recover fully from a back injury.

The middle order batsman has not recovered after tearing a disc in his lower back in the second test against Bangladesh six weeks ago, a United Cricket Board statement said on Tuesday.

McKenzie hopes to regain fitness in time to be considered for the test series, which starts on July 24.

“I have made good progress, but I am probably two weeks short of full fitness,” the statement quoted McKenzie as saying.

“If I pushed myself to be ready for the one-dayers I might risk missing out on the whole tour and I’d rather make sure I’m 100 percent for the test series.”

McKenzie will undergo a rehabilitation programme and his progress will be monitored by the South African team’s physiotherapist, Shane Jabaar. He aims to be fit by mid-July.

South Africa’s squad are due to arrive in England on June 16 and a decision on replacing McKenzie could be made this week, the statement said.—Reuters