London: England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) on Saturday confirmed that fast bowler Jofra Archer will be undergoing a procedure to his right hand following a scan and subsequent consultant review since he returned to the UK on Tuesday.
Archer has also had a further injection for the right elbow injury that had seen him declared unfit for selection for the current ODI series versus India and the first half of the Indian Premier League.
The procedure on Jofra’s hand will take place on Monday so he can recover during the planned break following his elbow injection.
“Jofra suffered a cut to his hand while cleaning at his home in January shortly before flying to India to prepare for the Test series. The injury was managed by the ECB’s medical team through the tour and it did not impact on his availability,” ECB said in an official statement.
“Further investigation and a specialist opinion was sought upon his return to the UK and, in conjunction with the ECB medical panel, it has been decided that surgery is the best option to manage his injury in the longer term,” it added.
Speaking before the start of the ODI series, regular skipper Eoin Morgan had made it clear that calls regarding Archer’s injury and healing process would be taken by the pacer in consultation with the medical team.
“To be honest, I cannot give a medical opinion. We know the situation with his elbow, it has progressively gotten worse. We know that it needs investigation, only time will tell. He has given his heart and soul to us since he has been involved so we will give him full attention in order to try and bring the best result possible,” said Morgan.
“It all depends on the outcome of the investigation that the medical team will do (Archer’s return to India for IPL). They will determine the best rehabilitation programme coming back and we will go from there. We fully trust our medical team; they have outstanding regarding player welfare and player rehabilitation. The trust is always there,” he added.