The fracture dislocation suffered by Danny Cipriani is the kind of gruesome injury that makes any sports fan wince. London Wasps remained tight-lipped last night about the extent of the damage to the fly half’s right ankle, but it is understood that he had suffered as many as three fractures to the area, as well as serious ligament damage.

Patrick Laing, an orthopaedic surgeon and former president of the British Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society, said that it looked likely from images of the injury that Cipriani had broken each of his malleolus bones, which are the bumps on the outside of the ankle. “Usually these things involve rotation but it looks in this case like it’s probably more the direct blow on the outside of the ankle that has caused the injury,” he said. “From what I’ve seen, there is a strong possibility that he has broken both malleoli. If you get force straight from the side and the ankle bends over, the malleoli can go and you end up with a nasty combination with bone and ligament injury.”

Wasps said that they expected Cipriani to be out of action for six months. Laing added: “The recovery time depends on the severity of the injury. If it is an open fracture, if the bone has broken the skin, then it is more serious. Six months sounds like a reasonable time.”