Australia paceman Mitchell Johnson out injured for up to five months

The Australia paceman Mitchell Johnson is likely to be sidelined for up to five months with a foot injury, almost certainly ruling him out of the Test series against New Zealand and India.

The 30-year-old, who has taken 190 wickets in 47 Tests, injured his left foot in the recent victory against South Africa and subsequent scans revealed a piece of metal embedded under his big toe.

“Mitchell will travel to Melbourne this week to be reviewed by specialist doctors and will most likely need surgery, which is expected to keep him out of cricket for four to five months,” the team physiotherapist Alex Kountouris said. “The programme for his recovery will be assessed following any surgery.”

Johnson, the ICC Player of the Year in 2009, has endured a disappointing 12 months with the ball since being dropped for the second Ashes Test against England last year.

He returned with a nine-wicket haul in the third Ashes Test in Perth but has rarely threatened to reach such heights since, taking just three wickets at the cost of 255 runs in the two recent Tests in South Africa.

He was one of five players unavailable through injury for the first of two Tests against New Zealand, which starts on Thursday at the Gabba in Brisbane.

Australia, who play India in a four-Test series starting in late December, have included four uncapped players in their squad for the Gabba match, including three pace bowlers.