It has been a season to forget for Jofra Archer as the England pacer is set to record a forgetful summer across all formats of the game. Speedster Archer was ruled out of the high-profile Ashes series with a stress fracture to his right elbow on Tuesday. With England suffering a major setback in the lead-up to the Test series against arch-rivals Australia, former cricketer Kevin Pietersen has issued a bold statement about the injured pacer.
Roped in by Rohit Sharma's Mumbai Indians for a whopping sum of INR 8 crore at the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction, Archer failed to make an impact in his debut season at MI. The former Rajasthan Royals (RR) star featured in only five matches in the 2023 edition of the IPL. Archer remained on the sidelines for 17 months after suffering multiple injuries prior to his comeback to international cricket in January.
Sharing his views about Archer's injury setback amid the IPL 2023, Pietersen observed that the recurrence of a stress fracture might end his journey with English cricket. "I'm gutted for Jofra. Absolutely gutted. I think this will probably end his journey with English cricket. I know that there are reports around a franchise contract, and that would be the smartest thing for him to do now. Take six months to recover, select a few tournaments to play, and bowl at the speed of light for a few months of the year. He would earn good money and still have a career in the game," Pietersen wrote in his blog for Betaway.
Pietersen also expressed his reservations about Archer playing the longest format of the game for England. The 28-year-old has played 21 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and 13 Test matches for England. "I think the longer form of the game has passed him by. I think English cricket has probably passed him by. It's no fault of his own, he's just injury prone. As much as he would love to play for England, because I know that's his dream, it's probably finished. He should now just go and cash in as much as he can in franchise cricket. But first of all, get himself fit," Pietersen added.
{{/usCountry}}Pietersen also expressed his reservations about Archer playing the longest format of the game for England. The 28-year-old has played 21 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and 13 Test matches for England. "I think the longer form of the game has passed him by. I think English cricket has probably passed him by. It's no fault of his own, he's just injury prone. As much as he would love to play for England, because I know that's his dream, it's probably finished. He should now just go and cash in as much as he can in franchise cricket. But first of all, get himself fit," Pietersen added.
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