England's fast bowling spearhead James Anderson has been ruled out of the rest of the Test series against South African with a rib injury.
The Lancashire bowler‚ who took 5/40 in the South Africa's first innings in the second test that England won by 189 runs at Newlands‚ bowled sporadically on the fifth day when he exhibited discomfort for the better part of the day.
The 37-year-old who is England's record Test wicket taker with 584 scalps from 151 matches‚ underwent an MRI scan on Wednesday morning.
Anderson felt tightness and discomfort at the end of the morning session on day five and was only able to bowl eight overs all day.
He finished with 2/23 from 18 overs in SA's marathon second innings.
The longevity question will again raise it's head with Anderson‚ who hasn't been able to complete a long series.
Last year‚ he limped out of the Ashes series against Australia with a calf strain that ruled him out of the rest of the series.
In the current series‚ he's bowled 70 overs across the two games‚ but at his age‚ it's highly unlikely he'll be back for a joust against South Africa.
From a replacement perspective‚ England are covered as Craig Overton has joined the team‚ but Jofra Archer is more likely to play after missing the second Test with an elbow strain.
The third Test starts in Port Elizabeth on January 16.
