Pietersen out of Ashes after undergoing surgery

London, July 22 (PTI) England's Ashes hopes were

Wednesday dealt a body blow after batting mainstay Kevin
Pietersen was ruled out of the remainder of the series
following a surgery on his Achilles tendon injury.

Pietersen was assessed by a specialist who recommended
the surgery, which rules him out of all cricket for up to six
weeks, thus drawing curtains on his Ashes campaign.

"The operation involved a small incision and trimming of
the blood vessels and nerves around the inflamed tendon and
appears, at this early stage, to have been routine," ECB chief
medical officer Nick Peirce said.

"Kevin will look to undertake a comprehensive
rehabilitation programme to ensure there is no risk of
recurrence. This is expected to be approximately six weeks but
will be taken at an appropriate pace following constant
review," he added.

Pietersen needed four injections to take to the field for
the second Test which England won at Lord's but situation
worsened further and the star batsman is currently unable to
run or even walk comfortably, Pierce said.

"He had a strong desire to get through the Ashes series
but despite this he has recently been unable to achieve a
maximum level of performance," Pierce added.

Pietersen himself was devastated after being told that he
would miss the ongoing five-match series which England is
leading 1-0.

"As an England cricketer the Ashes are the pinnacle of
the game, so I'm absolutely devastated to be missing the rest
of this series," Pietersen said.

"I hate missing matches for England and especially during
an Ashes summer but now that the decision has been made to
undergo surgery I'm confident I can return to the England team
injury-free following a course of rehabilitation," he said.

"To leave a winning dressing room at this time is heart
breaking but it wouldn't be fair to the team or myself to
continue given the severity of the injury.

"I'll be supporting the team closely and wish them the

best of luck as they look to build on the brilliant win at
Lord's and reclaim the Ashes," added the former captain. PTI
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