Jofra Archer in Serious Doubt For The Ashes

image-lhh5qxfnJofra Archer [Image- IPLT20]

England pacer Jofra Archer has cut short his 2023 Indian Premier League campaign to return to the United Kingdom in a bid to recover from his long-standing elbow issues.

Archer has been suffering from elbow issues since the past two years, forcing him to miss a huge chunk of international and franchise cricket.

He returned to the IPL this year, but the elbow pain flared up, forcing him to undergo another surgery.

The Barbados-born cricketer linked up with the MI set-up post-surgery, and while he featured in one of the fixtures against the Punjab Kings, the ECB has confirmed that pushing through discomfort has proved to be 'challenging' for the seamer.

Here's what ECB said via an official statement:

"Archer has been recovering from right elbow surgery. However, pushing through the discomfort whilst recently playing, hoping it will settle, has proven challenging."

"Therefore, it has been agreed for him to return to the UK for a period of rest and rehabilitation to give him the best opportunity for a full recovery."

Archer featured in 5 games for MI in IPL 2023, in which he could only manage 2 wickets at 95 apiece and an economy rate of 9.5. Mumbai have named Archer's former teammate Chris Jordan as his replacement.

He will now look to get back to prime shape ahead of the all-important home Ashes series, which kicks off at Edgbaston from June 16.