LONDON: Kevin Pietersen has suffered complications following last month's Achilles surgery with the England batsman having to return to hospital after developing an infection in the scar tissue.

Pietersen, 29, underwent an operation after just two Tests of the Ashes series against Australia and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) estimated him to be out for around six weeks.

The injury first flared during England's tour of the Caribbean last winter and after hobbling through matches at Cardiff and Lord's thanks to painkilling injections, South African-born Pietersen was forced to see a specialist.

An immediate decision to operate was taken on July 22 in a bid to get the former England captain back in action for some of the one-day series against Australia in September.

The ECB in a statement released Tuesday reported: "Kevin Pietersen will be discharged from hospital tomorrow (Wednesday) after experiencing a complication of the wound made during surgery on his injured right Achilles two-and-a-half weeks ago.

"He was seen by a wound care specialist yesterday (Monday) and will receive a course of antibiotics in order to exclude infection.

"Medical advice is that a complication can occur post-surgery and indeed resulted in this case, despite Kevin closely following specialist advice on management of the wound.

"He will be reassessed by the specialist later this week and will return to his planned programme of rehabilitation once the wound has fully healed."