‘Never had a thought of giving up on any of the formats’ - Jofra Archer opens up on his international future

Ahead of the Ashes 2023, there are certain concerns regarding Jofra Archer’s fitness. The ace pacer missed plenty of cricket in the last couple of years due to injuries and made his return to professional cricket earlier this year when he represented MI Cape Town in the inaugural edition of the SA20 league. Archer is currently featuring for Mumbai Indians in IPL 2023 and has already missed the majority of the matches due to fitness issues.

The 28-year-old recently stated that 2023 is a huge year for him and he is trying to keep a balance between playing and resting. The cricketer also mentioned that if he manages to get through IPL without an injury, then he will be placed well to play the Ashes at home. Meanwhile, despite so much trouble keeping up with his fitness, Archer is not yet ready to give up on any of the formats.

“It's a huge year, I think everything is intertwined; everything bounces off everything else. If I can get through (the IPL) then I'll be in a good position to play in the Ashes, and then everything else will follow with it,” Archer was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

"I still want to play as much red-ball (cricket) as possible. I've never really had a thought of trying to give up on any of the formats as yet. Let me get through this year and see how the body's feeling, but I don't plan to give up any of the three. I may have to manage my workloads for at least a year, and that's absolutely fine with me. But I want to make the most of all the cricket that is available to me,” he added.

Really happy with how everything has gone so far: Jofra Archer

Other than his 6/40 in the second ODI against South Africa earlier in the year, Archer has not created any major impact since his return from injury. However, the pacer looked decent with his lines and lengths and revealed that he is happy with his progress. The speedster also mentioned that it has been tough for him but he enjoyed it nevertheless.

“I'm really, really happy with how everything has gone so far. It's still pretty tough, coming back and trying to manage expectations and everything else that comes with it. But my brief experience has been really good,” Archer said.