England’s Barabdos-born speedster Jofra Archer has been away from international cricket for more than a year. Archer’s elbow injury prevented him from playing all the matches for Mumbai Indians in the previous edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). For IPL 2024, he was not allowed to enter the auction by the England Cricket Board (ECB) as they need his services for the upcoming T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies. Ahead of Archer’s return to international cricket, former England pacer Stuart Broad called his fitness a concern.
"Yeah, it's a concern. First of all, (he is) a friend of mine, a teammate of mine, an amazing talent for world cricket. He has got genuine pace, he moves the ball. He's a match winner," Broad told PTI.
"We've not seen the best of Jofra Archer on the field now, for coming on, nearly four years. He's played bits and bobs, but he's had awful injury problems which is very difficult for him to cope with.
"I think there's positivity from him and the England camp that there's a chance we might see him in the T20 World Cup, which would be a great lift for England fans and cricket fans around the world," he added.
Last year, Archer stunned the ECB when he turned up for his school team in Barbados to save them from getting relegated. Broad feels that Archer's nature of injury is a concern but he will thrive in England's team environment.
"It's a concern that his injury keeps coming back, but he's got some really good people around him to help lift him up and drive him forward. Ultimately, he's signed a two-year contract with England cricket, so they must believe that he'll come back to his best as soon as possible," said the 37-year-old.
The Nottingham-born bowling all-rounder has backed Ben Stokes’ decision to pull out of T20 World Cup 2024 but feels that this aura will be missed during the tournament.
"England, of course, will miss a player of that aura. But England have got the quality to cover that. They've got the batting line-up that's full of hitters and they've got some good pace bowling options and spin bowling options," he said.
"They'll miss the aura and the leadership skills of Ben Stokes, but they can cover him as a player," Broad added.
Broad who retired from international cricket last year is currently commentating in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. However, he is open to a coaching role as well. On the other hand, Archer recently toured India as part of Sussex squad's preparatory camp in Karnataka.
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