Dominic Cork has set his sights on making his England comeback in Sri Lanka in the new year, having been forced out of the current tour to Pakistan with a troublesome back injury.

The Derbyshire all-rounder will land in England today having been sent home to consult further specialists about the back problem which first flared up during training with the other Test players who arrived during the one-day international series.

Despite a scan and a cortisone injection, Cork was forced to admit defeat in his battle to force his way into contention for the Tests in Faisalabad and Karachi which complete the tour.

He will now seek further advice to try and solve the problem. "I've never had anything like this before in my career. It's a first for me, and I've probably been lucky that I've never had this sort of problem with my back," he conceded.

"For my own peace of mind and England's I have to go and get it checked out and get it seen by specialists at home. It's a worry when you've not had an injury before. But we've seen a good specialist out here who knows a lot about the spine, and his advice to have an injection hasn't worked out."

Cork's early departure leaves England with Alex Tudor, who is yet to play a game on the tour, as the only recognised cover for first-choice all-rounder Craig White for the remainder of the tour - with Andrew Flintoff still unable to bowl because of his own back trouble.

The tourists have decided against calling up a further replacement, and Cork remains hopeful of regaining his fitness before the second leg of England's winter itinerary when they leave for Sri Lanka at the end of January.

"We'll wait and see what the specialist says. There will be a plan, and I will be in contact with England. As soon as they tell me what action to take then I'll be straight into it," he said.

"I have nine weeks until England leave for Sri Lanka, and my aim is to get fully fit for then.

"It's a disappointment because it's not nice to leave a tour early, but we made a decision between the management and me that this was the best course of action.

"You also have to think that I've got a long time left in the game and I've also got to think about my career as well - although I've been quite low at times over the last few days knowing the cortisone injection hadn't worked."

The first stage in Cork's rehabilitation programme is to rule out any permanent damage after a scan in Pakistan last week revealed nothing but the usual wear and tear which most bowlers suffers from.

"I'll probably see a consultant once I get back home to check out the major concerns, and if there's anything serious structure-wise then we can pick it up and act upon it," he said.

"You don't want to think of the worst scenario, but unfortunately you have to rule that one out first of all.

"I was bowling in the indoor school at Derby before the tour without any pain and I flew out here with the other Test players and we had a week on our own and started to pick it up on the third or fourth day.

"It just seemed to be one of those bowler's niggles that you get from not bowling for a while on grass, but it's constantly got worse."