South Africa's Elton Jantjies doubtful for Ireland Tests

South Africa fly-half Elton Jantjies faces a race against time to be fit for the home Test series against Ireland next month.

The 25-year-old is set to undergo surgery on an injured hand this week after he fractured a finger during the Lions' 52-24 Super Rugby victory over the Jaguares at the weekend .

Jantjies has been in eye-catching form for the Lions and was seen as a banker for the No 10 jersey in new coach Allister Coetzee's Springboks team for the three-match series against the Irish, starting in Cape Town on June 11.

But the Lions confirmed in a statement on Monday that Jantjies will have an operation which is expected to keep him sidelined for three to four weeks.

Coetzee is likely to introduce more black players into the his team to meet the South African government's transformation targets and Jantjies has deserved a call-up after steering the Lions to the top of the South African Conference 2 in Super Rugby.

He looks certain to miss the first Test against Ireland, but could be back for the matches in Johannesburg (June 18) and Port Elizabeth (June 25) if his recovery goes to plan.  

The Lions suffered further blows on Saturday with full-back Jaco van der Walt ruled out for up to six weeks with a knee injury, while prop Corne Fourie injured a rib cartilage and will undergo a late fitness test this week.