According to Rajasthan Royals (RR) team director, Kumar Sangakkara, the franchise will not be rushing England pacer Jofra Archer who recently underwent surgery. But the Royals do hope that Archer will play some role in their Indian Premier League (IPL 2021) campaign.
The right-arm fast bowler had to undergo surgery to remove a glass fragment from his tendon on his right hand last week after his attempt to clean the fish tank went wrong.
“Not having him at the start is a big blow for us because a lot of our planning is centered around his availability. We are certainly hoping that he will be available for some part of the IPL but we have contingency plans in place now and no risks will be taken,” Sangakkara said.
The former Sri Lanka cricketer also knows the fact that Archer’s value to international cricket is a part of their decision on him and thus, they are guided by the experts who are looking after the pacer.
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“It's very important that Jofra gets fit, not just for the IPL, but importantly for his international career. His value to world cricket and to England cricket is part of our decision and we will be guided by the experts in English cricket who look after Jofra,” he added.
Thus, it will be interesting to see how the RR bowling attack performs without Jofra Archer in their opening game against KL Rahul-led Punjab Kings on 12 April at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
(With Reuters inputs)
