England’s demoralizing Ashes tour reached a new low when their series player, Jofra Archer, was ruled out due to the latest in a long line of injuries.
Archer will not feature in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne or the New Year’s match in Sydney after being diagnosed with a left side strain.
The 30-year-old seamer battled fitness issues for four years, including stress fractures in his back and right elbow, but has been doing well since making a long-awaited return against India last summer.
Now, after playing each of the first three Tests against Australia, he has succumbed again.
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Jofra Archer has been ruled out of the last two Ashes Tests in England due to a left side injury
(Robbie Stephenson/PA)
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He joined the squad during training on Christmas Eve at the MCG but played no part during training and a spokesman later confirmed he was absent for the rest of the trip.
That will certainly raise questions about Archer’s future.
At short notice he was signed for a leading role at the T20 World Cup and must now await the results of additional scans upon his return to Britain.
In the long term, there are now new concerns about his body’s ability to cope with the demands of the five-day game.
Archer recently signed a new two-year contract with the ECB, but this latest crisis, having handled his return to action with extreme caution, is raising alarm bells.
He has bowled a total of 80 overs in the matches in Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide, taking nine wickets at 27.11 and maintaining the lowest strike rate in the touring attack.
In the third Test he took five for 53 in the first innings and scored 51 to emerge as a shining light in an increasingly gruesome tour.
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