Quinton de Kock is at risk of missing the third Test in Hamilton and will undergo a late fitness Test on Friday.

Scans revealed that De Kock injured a tendon in his right index finger in the second Test victory in Wellington.

‘At the time, we had an X-ray done to exclude a fracture, and thankfully that was clear,’ said team manager Mohammed Moosajee.

‘However, he still complained of pain and discomfort in the finger, so we had a scan done in Hamilton on Wednesday which revealed tendon damage to the last digit of the index finger.

‘We will make a late call on his availability for the match on Friday, after he undergoes a fitness test with protective strapping to see if he will be able to bat or keep wicket. Either way, he is going to need a protracted period of recovery, which will take between four to six weeks. In the long-term, there is every likelihood of him missing out on the IPL, because of the expected recovery time.

‘Being a wicketkeeper, every time he catches the ball, there is strain on the finger and it makes it difficult to allow for sufficient time to recover,’ he added.

‘If he doesn’t have the four to six weeks’ recovery time, further activity could aggravate the injury and it could even jeopardise his participation in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy, and the full tour to England.’

The 24-year-old went on a slight dry run by scoring consecutive ducks, 6, 10 and 4, but he managed to find his form with a vital 91 in the second Test to help SA go 1-0 up.

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