England bowler Jofra Archer has risked the wrath of the ECB after seemingly playing a club match without their knowledge.
2019 World Cup winner Archer is still recovering from an elbow injury, which has kept him out of the professional game since March.
He recently stepped up his comeback by joining his international team-mates in the Caribbean, where they are midway through an eight-match white-ball series against the West Indies.
And the 28-year old, who moved to England from Barbados in 2015, used the opportunity to turn out for his old school in a Barbados Cricket Association Division 1 Championship clash, scoring 11 with the bat and taking 3 for 18 with the ball.
“I’m not aware of that,” Key reportedly said of Archer’s game time, adding “I’ll find out.”
The former England opener, speaking before the tour, said of Archer: “We take a bet with Jofra, because of the upside. That’s what lures you in.
“Who’s the best with the new ball? Jofra Archer. Who’s the best in the middle? Jofra Archer. Who’s the best at the death? Jofra Archer.
“It’s the Ashes in two years, the T20 World Cup in the summer, you don’t want to risk rushing something and kibosh the rest of his career.”
T20 tour perfect prep for World Cup – Woakes
Archer has reportedly now returned to the UK after his training camp in the Caribbean, leaving his England team-mates behind as they prepare for a five-match T20 series against the West Indies, which gets underway in Barbados on Tuesday.
Jos Buttler’s side are looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2-1 defeat across three One-Day Internationals to the same opposition.
They have been bolstered by a number of reinforcements, with 2022 World Cup winners Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali jetting in after missing the 50-over fixtures.
Chris Woakes is also set to feature, having been rested for the ODIs, and he believes the series is the ideal way to build up to next year’s T20 World Cup, which takes place in the West Indies and United States.
“There’s always an emphasis on the result,” he said, “but at the same time, you want to prepare for what’s ahead.
“We’re in the thick of a series which is going to be quite important for us going forward with the T20 here in six months.
“So the focus is learnings as to conditions, and also performances sometimes rather than the end results. The perfect idea is you do all of that and get the result as well.”
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