Former England batsman Ian Bell to miss the rest of the 2019 season after suffering tendon issue in his left knee
- Ian Bell initially suffered toe injury playing in Pakistan Super League in February
- He used underwater treadmills to get fit but then had tendon issue in left knee
- Warwickshire batsman played only two second XI games for county this season
Five-times Ashes winner Ian Bell’s 2019 season is over before it began following more injury agony.
Warwickshire veteran Bell, one of the heroes of 2005, had been using the underwater treadmills at Aston Villa’s training ground Bodymoor Heath in his bid to return from a toe ligament injury incurred at the Pakistan Super League in February as soon as possible.
But the 37-year-old, who won the last of his 287 England caps in 2015, then suffered a tendon issue in his left knee that limited him to just two second XI matches.
Former England batsman Ian Bell will not play for Warwickshire this season after a knee injury
Further investigation by specialists revealed that the man who finished as top scorer in Division Two of the 2018 Championship, as Warwickshire secured the title, would be sidelined until the autumn.
‘It’s extremely frustrating for us, and for Ian, that another injury has happened when he was extremely close to a first team return,’ said Paul Farbrace, Warwickshire’s sport director.
‘Ian will need to have several injections, which rules him out of action for six to eight weeks and effectively ends his season.
‘He will now have a three-week period of minimal activity before working closely with our medical and strength and conditioning teams to prepare him for the pre-season programme in 2020.’
Warwickshire’s sport director Paul Farbrace admitted that Bell’s injury was ‘frustrating’