England's preparations for the World Cup have received a potentially significant setback, after Eoin Morgan, their captain, suffered a blow to the left index finger during a fielding drill.

Morgan, who had been preparing for England's warm-up match against Australia at the Ageas Bowl on Saturday, is due to be sent to hospital for an X-ray after practice.

Although the indication from the England camp is that the scan is purely precautionary, the loss of their captain would be a grievous blow to the team's hopes of living up to their No. 1 world ranking, and lifting the World Cup for the first time in the team's history.

Morgan's leadership has been an integral part of England's rise from ignominy at the 2015 World Cup, both through his on-field tactical acumen and cool head, and in fostering the close-knit team culture that has already enabled the squad to regroup following the potential disruption caused by Alex Hales' failed drugs tests.

Speaking at the launch of the England team kit earlier this week, Morgan explained how the team had put in place contingency plans to cope with unexpected setbacks.

"We've planned for instances when the [team] culture had been tested or individually we'd been tested," he said. "There's still loads of things that we've planned for that might continue to crop up throughout the World Cup.

"I wouldn't say it's been smooth, I'd say we've been better equipped at dealing with anything that's cropped up, certainly as a group," he added.

"Our prep and planning has been excellent and the guys have responded to that by performing on a consistent basis."

England's opening match of the World Cup takes place against South Africa at The Oval on May 30.

More to follow

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.