It was during the Afghanistan match when Archer suffered the injury. (Source: AP)England fast bowler Jofra Archer played a key role in team’s first-ever World Cup win. He was included in the English side after making some changes in residency rules in England. Having won the cup for England, now Barbados-born Jofra has revealed that he had to bear excruciating pain due to a side injury during the second half of the World Cup and he had to have painkillers to suppress the pain as there was no rest time.
It was during the Afghanistan match when Archer suffered the injury. With England effectively facing must-win situations in their last two matches against India and New Zealand during the round-robin phase, the hosts couldn’t afford to rest Archer.
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Jofra scalped 20 wickets in the World Cup to finish as the joint third-highest wicket-taker, and also bowled the crucial Super Over in the final against New Zealand, which also ended in a tie as England edged Kane Williamson’s team on boundary count.
Speaking to BBC, Jofra said, “It was pretty excruciating. I’m fortunate it’s settled quickly. It was pretty bad. I couldn’t do it without painkillers, which was from the Afghanistan game onwards. I couldn’t get a week’s rest in during the tournament because of how close the games were. I only ever needed a week to 10 days.”
Archer is now setting his sights on red-ball cricket and the upcoming Ashes. “I’m just ready to go out there and show the guys what I can do with a red ball. I think my red-ball record is better than my white-ball record, so I just can’t wait to get the opportunity,” he said.
