Liam Pitchford is excluded from the European Championships and WTT starter London with a hip injury that requires surgery.
The English No. 1 has been an injury to his right hip since the Olympic Games of Paris last year, but it has been exacerbated in recent weeks and an MRI scan has confirmed that action is now needed to solve the problem.
Liam sees Professor Damian Griffin, one of the world’s leading hip specialists, for keyhole surgery in the coming weeks, with a period of managed recovery and rehabilitation that is subsequently required with the power and conditioning and physio team in the Elite Training Center in Sheffield.
The goal is that the four -fold Olympian is completely fit and shoots Championships in London before the 2026 World Team.
England will not select a replacement for the European Championships in Croatia next month, with Tom Jarvis, Paul Drinkhall, Sam Walker and Connor Green ready to represent the leopards.
Director Performance Development, Gavin Evans, said: “It is clearly very disappointing for Liam and for England.
“We will give him all the support he needs on and from the table to restore it and make it a positive to make him move better and act like a springboard to the worlds in London and further to the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028.
“Liam is only 32 and there is still enough table tennis at top level in him.
“As far as the European Championships are concerned, the rest of the team will go to a Prep camp in Madrid in a few days and then return to Sheffield immediately before we leave for Croatia. We are convinced that we can deliver a good performance at the competition.”
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