Graeme Smith sustains finger injury

Graeme Smith, the South African captain, has sustained a finger injury while fielding at the Eden Gardens in the build-up to the second and final Test on Sunday.

Smith was hit during practice and Michael Owen-Smith, South Africa's media manager, said he had strained a ligament on the outside half of the little finger in his left hand. "He had an x-ray on the little finger of his left hand, it shows no fracture at all. We are having MRI scan this afternoon just to be 100% certain of what the injury is. It is obviously some sort of ligament damage, so it is just to establish if it is that. At this stage it has been treated as a sprained ligament."

Though an x-ray taken at the ground ruled out a fracture, an MRI scan later in the day showed up ligament damage, with considerable swelling around the injury.

The medical team is however confident that the swelling will subside in the next 24 hours and Smith will put his finger to the test at Saturday's practice at Eden Gardens after which a decision will be taken on his fitness to play in the second Test.

Over the last 20 months Smith has had long-standing injury problems. He first suffered a tennis elbow injury during the IPL in India in April 2008 and that forced him to miss the last three ODIs against England the same year. He later broke his hand while facing Australia's Mitchell Johnson in the third Test in Sydney but bravely batted in the second innings to try and save the game. He missed the subsequent ODI series and decided to delay the surgery on on his injured tennis elbow until after the return series against the Australians at home last year.