South African hooker Malcolm Marx has had to withdraw from the rest of the Rugby World Cup due to a knee injury that the team has characterized as long-term, according to the Associated Press (AP).
The injury to one of the finest players in the squad was reportedly sustained in training on Wednesday when his knee was "caught in contact." His withdrawal is considered a blow to the Springboks' ambitions to defend the title.
"He’s been working very hard to be in the best form possible for the tournament and it’s tragic that his campaign has ended this way," coach Jacques Nienaber told AP.
Bongi Mbonambi is due to replace Marx. The specialized hooker was picked to captain the team's second-string in Sunday's match against Romania. In addition to him, 36-year-old utility forward Deon Fourie, who can play both flanker and hooker, could be included in the lineup.
Another forward, Marco van Staden, also has experience at the hooker position and could be called up to the roster, the coach said.
"We have enough cover at hooker with Bongi [Mbonambi] and Deon [Fourie] in the squad, while Marco [van Staden] has also been training there and has been named on all our team sheets so far as a hooker option," Nienaber said. "We’ll assess our needs for the rest of the tournament and confirm who we are calling up as an additional player later this week."
The South African team is also upset by a shoulder injury to lock Eben Etzebeth, who was substituted in the first half of the victorious match against Scotland last weekend. His unavailability is expected to last another 10 days, but the Springboks anticipate he will help the team on the field for the September 23 game against Ireland.
Pool B is currently led by the Irish with five points, with South Africa one point behind. The rest of the group, Scotland Romania and Tonga, have no points so far.
South Africa is the reigning champion of the tournament, having defeated England in Japan in the 2019 final.