England bowler Jofra Archer has revealed that retirement could potentially be on the horizon for him if his injury record doesn’t begin to improve.
Once perceived to be the guaranteed successor to the likes of James Anderson and Stuart Broad, the frighteningly quick bowler hasn’t been able to fulfil his potential.
He has now stated that, “I don’t know if I have another stop-start year in me.”
It is difficult not to feel sympathy for the Sussex player. Archer is 29 now and with the years passing by it is clearly taking a toll on him mentally.
Archer seemed to have the world at his feet in 2019 as he was instrumental in England winning the World Cup, with the then 24-year-old bowling in the super-over as England saw off New Zealand in the final at Lord’s to clinch a maiden title on home soil.
After the success he had enjoyed, Archer was featured in the Team of the Tournament alongside teammates; Jason Roy, Joe Root and Ben Stokes.
He went on to show his brilliance again in the thrd Ashes test of the series that same year, taking six wickets for 45 runs in the first innings, in what was only his second-ever test match.
In 2021, the injury problems started, with him needing operations on his elbow before suffering a back injury in 2022.
After seeming to have found his rhythm again after playing a blinder against South Africa in the third one-day international of the 2023 series, he took six wickets for 40 runs.
But Archer again suffered an injury setback with a recurring injury in his right elbow. He went on to miss the 2023 Ashes series and could have played an important part, as James Anderson didn’t look at the races.
Archer’s career bares similarities to Simon Jones and Andrew Flintoff, both of whom were part of the famous Ashes victory in 2005.
Flintoff himself said that he would drop “anyone” to accommodate Archer in the 2019 World Cup triumph and his assessment proved to be an accurate one.
(Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
Jones and Flintoff both suffered injuries that prevented them from reaching the heights they were expected to get to, and now Archer, who turns 30 next year, is looking like he could face a similar predicament.
While a retirement isn’t the solution, he or England want, he may be forced into it if he can’t maintain a long run of matches.
If he can manage to remain injury-free, there is still plenty of time to establish himself as one of England’s most prolific bowlers of the 21st century.
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Regardless of whether or not this will be possible, his name will forever be written into the English cricket history books, as a key member of the 2019 World Cup winning team.