Our plan is to prepare Jofra Archer slowly for the T20 World Cup: England Cricket
Robert Key, England Cricket Team Director, has given an important report about pacer Jofra Archer who was ruled out of the 2023 season due to a knee injury. The right-arm pacer didn’t play the 2023 World Cup in India.
Archer played a key role for the Three Lions in the 2019 World Cup in England claiming 20 wickets in the tournament and becoming the third-highest wicket-taker after Australia’s Mitchell Starc and New Zealand’s Lockie Ferguson who took 27 and 21 wickets respectively in that tournament.
The 28-year-old’s absence hurt the Three Lions very badly during the 2023 World Cup as England couldn’t secure a spot in the semi-finals and at one stage their 2025 Champions League qualification also looked very difficult. The team finished 7th with just 6 points above Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and the Netherlands. England failed to perform like the defending champions during the 2023 World Cup.
The Three Lions will feature in the T20 World Cup which will be a 20-team event that will be played in the USA and West Indies. The team will once again arrive as defending champions under the captaincy of Jos Butler after England won the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia losing just 1 match in the entire tournament.
Robert Key stated that if the England team wants to retain the T20 title then Archer will be a vital cog. He further stated in the interview that they are preparing Archer for this all-important ICC event. He also added that Archer looked in good shape during England’s tour of the West Indies, where he bowled as if he hadn’t got any problems with his elbow.
Key said,”our plan is to prepare him slowly for the T20 World Cup. I watched him bowl in the Caribbean and it looked as if he wasn’t away from the game. I don’t want to see him play and then get injured again.”
Archer has claimed 42 wickets each in ODI cricket and T20I cricket in 21 and 13 games respectively. The 28-year-old claimed 18 wickets in 15 T20 games with an economy rate of less than 8.
Robert Key stated that Archer wanted to play in the 2024 IPL season
During the interview, Key also said that the team management is very cautiously monitoring his recovery and they don’t want to take a decision quickly even though he can’t play the IPL this year which could be crucial to his preparations for the T20 World Cup in June.
Archer got injured during the 2023 IPL season due to which he was ruled out of the World Cup ultimately affecting England’s performance in the tournament.
Key further stated,”He wanted to feature in the IPL but we told him it’s not possible this time. If all goes well, he could add the playing years during the latter part of his career he didn’t play earlier. He is extremely talented.”
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