Exeter's Henry Slade to miss start of Six Nations 2020 for England

Exeter Chiefs centre Henry Slade is set to miss the start of England's Six Nations 2020 campaign after suffering ankle injuries.

The 26-year-old sustained injuries to both his ankles during the sixth round of the Gallagher Premiership clash between Exeter Chiefs and Leicester Tigers at Welford Road where he was forced to leave the field in the 33rd minute and had to miss the recently concluded game against Saracens which Rob Baxter's men went on to win 14-7.

According to Baxter, Slade might need a recovery period of six to eight weeks after fracturing his ankle.

"Henry has a small fracture to his ankle around the site of the plate he had put in a couple of seasons ago when he fractured it at Wasps," Baxter said.

"The prognosis of anything like that is six to eight weeks of healing time. There's no information at this stage that says it will be quicker or slower than six to eight weeks.

"It's not for me to say for which game exactly he'll be back because things can shorten up considerably towards the end of rehab time or they can relapse at the end, so it's impossible for me to say."

Slade has played 27 Tests for England since making his debut in August 2015 and was part of 2015 and 2019 World Cup campaigns.