By James Caldwell, PWTorch assistant editor

WWE star Rusev was reportedly injured during Tuesday night's Smackdown TV taping.

According to a correspondent report at the TV taping, Rusev started to favor his right ankle during a singles match against Ryback.

After the match ended, Rusev was helped backstage by medical personnel.

This was followed by a tweet posted Wednesday morning showing Rusev at the airport sitting in a wheelchair with his right ankle/foot in a walking boot.

Rusev is scheduled for the Intercontinental Title Elimination Chamber match on Sunday. WWE will likely address Rusev's status after Thursday's Smackdown episode airs.

Caldwell's Analysis: If it's not a work, it's a very convenient injury, as it gives WWE an "out" to remove Rusev from the Chamber match. Other than continuing his issue with Dolph Ziggler, Rusev really should not be in the Chamber match. He doesn't need the IC Title and there's no way he should be pinned or submitted in the multi-man match setting, where it would be an historic event lost in the shuffle of the match. Depending on the severity of the reported injury, it could turn out to be a good thing for Rusev.

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