England are braced for an update on Jofra Archer's elbow injury, with the fast bowler due to see a specialist later this week amid fears he could miss the whole international summer.
Archer returned home from England's tour to India ahead of the ODI series in March due to the injury, which deteriorated over the course of the five-match T20I series and forced him to pull out of the IPL. He briefly returned in mid-May after a period of rest and rehabilitation, playing a second XI fixture and a County Championship match, but managed only 18 overs in the latter and had surgery on the advice on a specialist the following week.
He spent two months rehabbing under the supervision of Sussex and England medical staff and bowled nine overs - three in a T20 Blast fixture and six in a 50-over friendly against Oxfordshire - in mid-July, but has not joined up with Southern Brave during the Hundred. He will see a specialist later this week to determine the severity of the problem.
The Daily Mail reported on Tuesday that Archer is at risk of missing all five of England's Tests against India, though he tweeted later in the day that a report in another newspaper - which suggested his prospects of taking part in the T20 World Cup and Ashes were "in jeopardy" - was "click bait at best". Archer had previously written in his Mail column that he was "quite prepared" to miss the India series if required, with his "primary focus" on England's winter schedule.
Archer was not included in England's squad for the first two Tests and with the next round of County Championship fixtures not starting until August 30, there will be scant opportunity for him to play competitive red-ball cricket in time to be considered for the final three. His last international appearance was in the fifth T20I against India on March 20.
James Vince, Southern Brave's captain, said last week that he was hopeful Archer would be made available for the second half of the group stage of the Hundred - which runs until August 19 - but it appears increasingly unlikely that he will play any part in the tournament.