Scrumhalf Faf de Klerk is waiting to hear if he will require surgery on a hip injury that could rule him out of the Springboks’ end-of-year tour to Europe.

De Klerk suffered the injury during the first Test against the British & Irish Lions and aggravated the problem during the Rugby Championship Tests against Australia and New Zealand.

He managed to play for 66 minutes in the thrilling Test victory over the All Blacks on the Gold Coast, but may now miss the Springboks’ fixtures against Wales, Scotland and England in November.

De Klerk has undergone scans on his hip and the results are being examined by a specialist to decide if surgery will be needed. If that is the case, the 29-year-old will face a period of months on the sidelines.

Sale Sharks director of rugby Alex Sanderson confirmed the news, but is hoping for a best-case scenario.

“Faf is currently undergoing assessment for his hip-flexor injury which was sustained in the Lions Test and has become more severe recently, but we need to get clarity on that. There are concerns that it could be months but we need confirmation. We have to wait for the right assessments, otherwise it is scaremongering, and we have had all the scans sent over.

“They are with the consultant in London right now and we have all his previous reports. They want to see it all before they make a decision about rehab, surgery or crack on. Those are three options but we haven’t had the decision yet.

“I am speculating as a rugby coach and it is frustrating when someone comes back injured, but surely there can’t be any coaches or organisations out there that set out to deliberately injure people. I don’t believe that is the case.”

Cobus Reinach filled in effectively for De Klerk during the Lions series, starting in the latter two Tests, while Herschel Jantjies continued in his role as an impact player.

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