Cape Town - Injured Sharks scrumhalf Cobus Reinach has undergone knee surgery as he begins his road to recovery.
Reinach was injured in the Sharks' 15-14 victory over to the Highlanders on April 22 when he damaged his anterior cruciate ligament.
It is anticipated that Reinach faces around nine months on the sidelines - ruling him out for the rest of the year while Super Rugby 2017 is a realistic aim for a return.
The injury was especially heartbreaking for Reinach given that he was considered to be in the Springbok mix for the June Test series against Ireland on home soil.
Reinach had come extremely close to making the 2015 World Cup squad and with Fourie du Preez now retired, he would have been backing himself to make an impact at international level.
The good news is that Reinach was all smiles is a picture he posted to his Twitter account on Monday from his hospital bed following his surgery.
We wish you a speedy recovery, Cobus!
Surgery??. Bring on the next 9 months!! ???? @TheSharksZA pic.twitter.com/PvEuw097Lq
— cobus reinach (@c_reinach) May 9, 2016