Stuart Broad has marvelled at an "ingenious new way of strapping" his left foot which looks set to allow him to feature in England's first Test against South Africa next week.
The fast bowler was a doubt for the Lord's clash, starting next Thursday, after sustaining a one-centimetre tear on the fat pad in his heel a couple of weeks ago.
It is an injury Broad has been hampered by in the past and his aggravation of the problem left him sweating over his availability for England, as well as Nottinghamshire's Royal London One-Day Cup final clash with Surrey.
However, having his foot well strapped effectively nullified the issue and helped him bowl nine overs without too much discomfort as Nottinghamshire triumphed by four wickets in the domestic 50-over showpiece match on Saturday.
It seems he will continue to manage the problem during the series against the Proteas, having been named in England's 12-man squad for the opening Test.
He wrote in his column for the Daily Mail: "I'm delighted that the fat pad injury I aggravated last week does not look like it's going to stop me playing in the first Test of the summer.
"I had a sick, nervous feeling all of last week after a scan diagnosed a one-centimetre tear at the side of my left foot and I can't thank the physios at Notts and England enough for the work they've done to get me fit.
"Playing at Lord's — where we beat Surrey to win the Royal London One-Day Cup — was a big test and it was pleasing that I came through unscathed.
"It's amazing what can be done if an injury is well strapped, and the physios came up with an ingenious new way of strapping my foot which effectively closed up the tear and enabled me to bowl relatively pain free."
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