Australia fast bowler Pat Cummins is set to miss a second successive Ashes series after a recurrence of his back injury.
The 20-year-old has played just one Test, against South Africa at Johannesburg in 2011, because of his susceptibility to injury.
But he made such an impression in that victory, taking 6-79 in the second innings to be man of the match, that he is still widely considered among the best of Australia's emerging crop of pace bowlers. Cummins was not considered for this summer's Investec Ashes in England, as he battled back from injury, but did make the A tour here and to South Africa.
He succumbed again, however, at the start of this month, and a Cricket Australia statement this morning read: "CA advises that Pat Cummins has suffered a recurrence of his lower back bone stress injury."
CA chief medical officer Justin Paoloni said: "Pat returned home early from the Australia A tour of Africa with some side/back soreness, and scans have shown a partial recurrence of his lower back bone stress injury suffered in October last year when he returned home from (the) Champions League.
"He will be closely monitored to determine his return to the playing field, but (we) expect that he will miss most of the 2013-14 domestic cricket season."