Australian captain Meg Lanning has been ruled out of the upcoming Ashes series with England after undergoing shoulder surgery on Wednesday.
Lanning sustained the joint injury during Australia's World Cup campaign in the UK, and will miss the next six to eight months of cricket.
"Meg has been managing a right shoulder injury and following the recent World Cup, it became apparent that she would require surgery," Cricket Australia Team Physiotherapist, Kate Mahony told cricket.com.au.
"Meg underwent surgery earlier this week and we expect that she will require a long rehabilitation period of 6-8 months, ruling her out of the upcoming Ashes Series.
"We will continue to monitor her progress, with return to play timelines to become clearer once she has commenced rehabilitation."
Lanning said she was disappointed to miss the Ashes, but is excited to get back out onto the training track as soon as possible.
"Whilst it’s very disappointing to be unavailable for the Ashes, I’m looking forward to getting stuck into my rehabilitation and returning to cricket as soon as possible," Lanning told cricket.com.au.
"It’s an incredibly special occasion for any cricketer to be a part of and I wish the team all the best as they set out to retain the Ashes."
Schedule for the upcoming Ashes series
First ODI Allan Border Field, October 22
Second ODI Coffs International Stadium, October 26
Third ODI Coffs International Stadium, October 29
Day-Night Test North Sydney Oval, November 9-12
First T20 North Sydney Oval, November 17
Second T20 Manuka Oval, November 19
Third T20 Manuka Oval, November 21
