Jasprit Bumrah, India's fast bowler, is expected to fly to New Zealand for back surgery.
According to Cricbuzz, the medical team of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the National Cricket Academy (NCA) have selected a surgeon named Rowan Schouten, who previously worked on England pacer Jofra Archer.
The plans are being made on a war footing to have Bumrah, who has been out of commission for the last five months, flown to Auckland as soon as possible for surgery.
Schouten previously worked with renowned orthopaedic surgeon Grahame Inglis, who operated on a few New Zealand players, including Shane Bond, the Mumbai Indians' bowling coach, who is likely to have suggested Schouten's name.
According to the report, Schouten also assisted Inglis in the surgery of Australian pacer James Pattinson, as well as Ben Dwarshuis and Jason Behrendorff, both of whom had back issues.
Bumrah's recovery time is estimated to be between 20 and 24 weeks, which means he could miss the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 and the World Test Championship (WTC) final in London if India qualifies.
The right-arm quick last played for India in a Twenty20 International against Australia on September 25, 2022, and was forced to miss the Asia Cup and T20 World Cup due to a back injury.
The BCCI's current priority is to get Bumrah ready for the World Cup in October-November.