Ryan Sidebottom will miss the rest of the season after succumbing to the injuries that have haunted him this summer. England yesterday ruled the left-arm seam bowler out of the rest of the NatWest Series, which continues today with a day-night match at Trent Bridge, his home ground. Mick Newell, the Nottinghamshire director of cricket, said: “We don't expect to see Ryan playing again this season.”

Sidebottom's latest injury is a groin strain, but he has been troubled in recent weeks by problems with his hip, back and neck. England's medical staff hope that a period of rest and rehabilitation will remedy problems caused by a heavy workload in his first full year in international cricket. “Surgery is not being considered at the moment,” the ECB said.

The failure of Sidebottom, 30, to overcome his injuries raises fears about his ability to cope with the demands of England's packed schedule. While he had a good injury record in county cricket, his body has struggled with the intensity required at international level and he cannot now be considered an automatic selection for a hectic programme that culminates in the Ashes series next summer.

For the second of the five one-day matches today, the first international to be played under Trent Bridge's new floodlights, South Africa hope to recall Albie Morkel after the all-rounder missed their defeat at Headingley Carnegie on Friday because of a shoulder injury. His brother, Morne, remains troubled by a side strain.

Kevin Pietersen warmed up for today's game by hitting a ball in practice from the middle at Trent Bridge on to the roof of the towering five-storey Radcliffe Road stand, the tallest in English cricket. It is believed that no player has managed such a feat in a match since the stand was built in 1998. “I've not heard of anyone hitting it up there,” Peter Wynne-Thomas, the Nottinghamshire historian, said.