Chris Froome, who is still recovering from the injuries he sustained after crashing at the Criterium du Dauphiné in June, has been back in the operating theatre after accidently cutting himself at home with a kitchen knife.

Writing on Twitter, the Team Ineos rider said: “Stupidly cut my thumb with a kitchen knife and had to have surgery to put the tendon back together last night. Stuck giving a thumbs up for a couple of weeks

“This is not my year,” he added. “Can’t wait for 2020.”

The injuries Froome suffered while undertaking a recce of the Dauphiné time trial route included a fractured right femur, a fractured elbow, and fractured ribs and kept him out of July’s Tour de France, where he had been targeting a record-equalling fifth victory in the race.

There was some good news for the 34-year-old over the summer however – July also saw him awarded the overall victory at the 2011 Vuelta, where he had finished runner-up to Juan Jose Cobo, after the Spaniard was stripped of the title due to irregularities in his biological passport.