As England prepares to defend their ICC World Cup title, they have received a significant injury boost with the imminent return of their star bowler, Jofra Archer. According to England’s former assistant coach, Paul Farbrace, Archer is all set to make his highly anticipated comeback to international cricket ahead of the prestigious tournament.
In the past couple of years, the right-arm pacer has faced numerous injury setbacks, spending considerable time on the sidelines. An elbow injury kept him out of the entire IPL season last year, followed by a stress fracture in his back, which ruled him out of the home summer season as well.
Archer made his comeback in March this year during England’s limited-overs tour of Bangladesh, marking his return to international cricket since March 2021. He also made his debut for Mumbai Indians in the IPL but faced another injury setback, limiting him to just five games before a recurrence of the elbow injury forced him to miss both the IPL and the home season.
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With concerns arising about his participation in the ICC World Cup 2023, Farbrace revealed that Jofra Archer is on track for a comeback ahead of the marquee event in India. Farbrace, who coaches Archer at the County side Sussex, provided the fantastic news about his progress.
“He is going well,” Farbrace shared with BBC Radio 5 Live. “I think he is on course for the World Cup, which is fantastic news.”
Jofra Archer played a pivotal role in England’s historic triumph at the 2019 World Cup, finishing as the third-highest wicket-taker with 20 scalps to his name. Notably, he bowled the crucial super over in the final against New Zealand.
Farbrace also discussed Archer’s future in Test cricket, noting that the pacer hasn’t played a Test for England since the match against India in Ahmedabad in 2021. As the team looks ahead to the next Ashes series in 2025, they will need to strategize on how to bring out the best in Archer in the longer format of the game.