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England pacer Jofra Archer is hopeful of playing for the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) if the tournament gets rescheduled later this year.
The IPL governing council (GC) and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in an emergency meeting unanimously decided to postpone IPL 2021 season. The BCCI is keen to tap the September window before the T20 World Cup to finish the league. Archer didn't play a single game in the IPL 2021 but the pacer is hopeful of featuring in the tournament if it gets rescheduled. "If I did go to India probably would have home early anyway. Hopefully, if it (IPL) does get reschedule for this year, I will be able to go again. It was a hard decision not to go to India, it was really unpredictable, I could have gone but I don't know how many games would I have played," said Archer on Sussex Cricket YouTube channel. "Rajasthan Royals and England supported me in my decision. You obviously build a good relationship as I have been the Royals for the last three years. Stokes too suffered a bit, I think going over his hand and I don't even know if he going to be ready for these Tests against New Zealand," he added. Archer had 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 ECB's medical team managed the injury throughout the tour, and it did not impact his availability. A fragment of glass was removed during the operation to his middle finger on his right hand in March. Archer had played two Tests and all the five T20Is against India, and then he was ruled out from the ODI series and the first half of the IPL. Earlier this week, Ashley Giles, the managing director of the England men's team hinted that England's centrally contracted players are likely to miss the remainder of the IPL 2021 wherever and whenever the tournament resumes. Giles said England's schedule for the summer is "incredibly busy" and the management wants to look after their players. "None of us knows what a rearranged IPL looks like at the moment; where it's going to be or when. But from when we start this summer against New Zealand, our programme is incredibly busy," ESPNcricinfo quoted Giles as saying. "We've got a lot of important, high-profile cricket including the T20 World Cup and the Ashes. And we're going to have to look after our players," he had added. Meanwhile, Archer made a comeback as he played his first-class match for Sussex since September 2018 on Thursday. (ANI)
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