In what could be a key Ashes storyline to watch, England pace bowler Jofra Archer recently underwent surgery during a 19-day spell on the sidelines for the Mumbai Indians.
The speedster returned to action for Mumbai in the Indian Premier League (IPL) after missing four games with what Indians coach Mark Boucher claimed was a “little niggle.”
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However, The Telegraph has since revealed Archer travelled to Belgium and had further surgery on his troublesome right elbow.
The surgery didn’t appear to affect Archer much in his return to action for Mumbai against the Punjab Kings as he bowled 144km/h thunderbolts.
Archer’s recent operation was his fifth in just 25 months and was initially expected to keep him out of action for up to four weeks.
The English quick’s surgery was performed by Belgian surgeon Roger van Riet, who previously operated on Mark Wood after he sustained an elbow injury last year while on tour in the Caribbean.
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Given Archer’s short turnaround from surgery to playing for Mumbai in the IPL, it seems unlikely it will negatively impact his chances of representing England in the Ashes.
The surgery in Belgium is the latest in a long list for Archer who has been riddled with injuries in recent years.
In 2021, the 28-year-old dealt with constant elbow issues which were ultimately diagnosed as a stress fracture and forced him to miss the T20 World Cup as well as the Ashes series on Australian soil.
Archer then sustained a stress fracture in his back just as he was getting close to returning last year.
Rob Ahmun, England’s head of science and medicine, described both injuries as “career-threatening” at the time but Archer has since recovered on each occasion.
Should Archer return to full fitness, he’ll be looking to recreate his performances from the 2019 Ashes series when he burst onto the scene and terrorised the Aussie batting line-up.
