Jofra Archer: England bowler to have surgery on elbow injury

Jofra ArcherGetty Images

Archer was seen holding his elbow during Sussex's game against Kent

England fast bowler Jofra Archer will have surgery on his troublesome right elbow on Friday.

The 26-year-old had an injection for the long-standing problem in March and has played only two matches since then.

He managed just five overs in the second innings of Sussex's draw with Kent last week.

A timeframe on his recovery is yet to be given in a year that includes the Twenty20 World Cup and an Ashes series in Australia.

"Jofra Archer has been reviewed by a medical consultant in respect of his right elbow soreness. He will now proceed to surgery tomorrow," said an England and Wales Cricket Board statement.

"Further updates will be released in due course."

Archer has played 13 Tests, 17 one-day internationals and 12 T20s for England, and was part of the team that won the World Cup in 2019.

He missed a number of matches on the tour of South Africa at the beginning of 2020 with the elbow problem then was also ruled out of the fourth Test against India earlier this year because of the same issue.

The Barbados-born bowler sat out the aborted Indian Premier League, during which time he had an operation to remove glass from his hand, an injury he sustained when cleaning a fish tank at home.

He made his return this month, first in the Sussex second team then against Kent in the County Championship - and it emerged on Saturday he had told Sussex captain Ben Brown he was not fit to bowl.

In all, his comeback consisted of fewer than 50 overs.

Meanwhile, the ECB is yet to receive a formal request to rearrange England's Test series against India later this summer in order to accommodate a rescheduled Indian Premier League (IPL).

The Times is reporting informal discussions have taken place between the ECB and the Board of Control for Cricket in India over the fifth and final Test, set for Old Trafford between 10-14 September.

An ECB spokesperson said: "We talk to the BCCI on a regular basis about a wide range of issues especially as we address the challenges of Covid-19, but have had no official request to change dates and are continuing to plan for the five-Test series as is scheduled."

Any change to the schedule would be problematic for the ECB, not only because of its packed nature, but also the desire to have as many England players as possible competing in the inaugural season of The Hundred, which begins in July.

In addition, tickets have already been sold in advance, so any changes would have knock-on effects for supporters.

The IPL was postponed on 4 May with 31 matches still to play after a number of positive coronavirus cases among the eight teams.

Some English counties have approached the ECB about the possibility of staging the remainder of the tournament in England, although that option is thought to be unlikely.

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