England seamer Josh Tongue could miss a significant portion of the home summer after suffering a setback with a pectoral injury.
The 26-year-old, who made his Test debut last summer, has not played since August, missing England’s white-ball tour of the Caribbean and the Test series in India.
An England statement said: “Josh has had a setback to his original injury. There is no timescale on when he’ll return to action.”
Tongue’s injury is a blow to England’s planning for life after the retirement of James Anderson.
The 41-year-old, England’s all-time leading wicket-taker, will retire after the first Test against West Indies at Lord’s on 10 July.
As one of the centrally contracted fast bowlers, Tongue would have been in line to benefit from Anderson’s exit.