JOFRA’S OUT OF ASHES
ENGLAND’S hopes of World Cup and Ashes glory next winter have been dealt a huge blow following confirmation that Jofra Archer (right) has suffered another stress fracture in his right elbow.
As exclusively revealed by Sportsmail this week, the 2019 World Cup-winning star was struck by a
setback during his rehabilitation from elbow surgery and was yesterday left to digest the devastating news that a recurrence of an injury which surfaced last year on tour in South Africa would keep him out of what promised to be twin peaks of his career.
Archer, 26, has been advised by specialists to rest to allow the fracture to heal and will remain on the sidelines until 2022. He will be reviewed by the ECB’s medical staff this autumn. The ECB clarified that the operation on May 21, to remove a bone fragment from the Sussex fast bowler’s elbow, was unrelated to the historic stress fracture. Archer’s loss will be keenly felt by England across both the game’s shortest and longest international formats: he is arguably the world’s best white-ball fast bowler, claiming the Indian Premier League’s MVP award in 2020 despite playing for a struggling Rajasthan Royals team, while his pace and bounce would have provided Joe Root’s Test team with some attacking X factor in Australian conditions. England’s record wicket-taker Jimmy Anderson said: ‘It’s a huge disappointment for Jofra and the team. He’s been an influential part of the team for the past couple of years and he’ll be a huge miss in what’s coming up for the rest of the year. ‘This injury has been bugging him for a while but hopefully he will come back stronger. We want him fully fit and firing.’ Jofra’s absence leaves England with just Mark Wood fit out of the three out-and-out quicks — viewed as integral to win in Australia — as Olly Stone is recuperating from the third back stress fracture of his career. Ben Stokes has taken time out to protect his mental well-being and Chris Woakes (heel) is currently available as injuries threaten the biggest of international years.