Scotland winger Nikki Walker has been ruled out of the Rugby World Cup after suffering a knee injury in his country's 23-12 win over Italy.

Walker went on as a second-half replacement in Saturday's match, but the Ospreys star was stretchered off in the closing stages.

The 29-year-old went for medical assessments on the injury, sustained in a relatively tame tackle, and a medial ligament problem was diagnosed, ruling him out of the tournament in New Zealand next month.

Scotland coach Andy Robinson, who will name his 30-man World Cup squad on Monday, said: "Nikki has worked exceptionally hard in training and some of the running lines he made when he came off the bench were first class.

"It's obviously disappointing for Nikki. We all feel for him but injuries do happen in sport and you just have to deal with them."

Walker, who has won 24 Scottish caps and scored six Test tries, will now return to his club for rehabilitation.

The injury means Robinson now has seven players to cut from his preliminary squad for Scotland's campaign, which begins against Romania on September 10.

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