Tendulkar will not be needed by India until October

India's star batsman Sachin Tendulkar faces three months of rehabilitation after surgery on his left hand.

Tendulkar emerged successfully from an operation at Sinai Hospital in the US city of Baltimore on Tuesday.

"The X-rays show that Tendulkar suffered a torn ligament and tendon to his ring finger that is affecting the finger joint," surgeon Dror Paley said.

Tendulkar is the world's leading one-day batsman with a record 12,219 runs and 34 centuries, as well as 8,811 Test runs.

He sustained the injury during the tour of New Zealand at the start of the year.

And the problem was exacerbated during the World Cup, although he was still the tournament's leading batsman with 673 runs as India reached the final.

"Clearly, he performed well at the World Cup despite this, but he was in pain," Paley added.

"It mostly affected his catch. Every time he had to catch the ball, it was painful."

"He'll need occupational therapy to work on range of motion and his grip strength," Paley said.

The doctors repaired the injury as part of an hour-long outpatient procedure.

Tendulkar will undergo physical rehabilitation starting on Wednesday, the day he is scheduled to head home.

The programme is expected to include exercises such as opening and closing the hand and squeezing a ball.

He will not be needed by his national side until October, when New Zealand tour India.