England Board Blasted For Paying IPL-Return Jofra Archer "Million Pounds A Year". This Is The Reason

Jofra Archer will miss England's first Test against New Zealand at Lord's starting Thursday because he has been playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) with Rajasthan Royals, who reached the playoffs and were beaten by Gujarat Titans last week. Simon Doull blasted Archer, along with the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB), for being careless. "It's ludicrous, absolutely ludicrous. How are you paying this guy up to a million pounds a year and he's not available for your first Test match? It's absolutely ludicrous," Doull said on Sky Sports.

"The last time New Zealand came here, we go back to that last Bazball series. Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Matt Henry were all practising in between games in the IPL with the red ball and getting through over and overs so they were ready to go when they arrived. I think they arrived five days before the first Test after the IPL on that previous tour."

However, England captain Ben Stokes leapt to the defence of Jofra Archer on Wednesday, insisting the fast bowler is "committed" to the national team despite his absence for the start of the Test series against New Zealand.

On Tuesday, England coach Brendon McCullum also cast doubt on Archer's availability for the second Test, which starts June 17, saying he is having "a little bit of a break at the moment" and needs to be assessed.

Archer has faced criticism from some pundits and former players for not prioritising England, with whom he has a central contract.

Stokes said he understood the frustrations around Archer's unavailability but believes it's a sign of the times with the proliferation of franchise leagues around the world.

"A lot of the points that people would be making around Jof and that situation, I think, are to do with the landscape back when they were playing," Stokes said, in a nod to former players. "It's completely different now. There are opportunities for cricketers now that there weren't 10, 15, 20 years ago. Yes, in an ideal situation, it would be unbelievably great to have everyone who you want available every single opportunity. But it's not the way of cricket at the moment. There's so much more out there for players."

Stokes said England doesn't want to run the risk of losing talented players like Archer.

With AP inputs

Featured Video Of The Day

Topics mentioned in this article

Jofra Archer England Cricket Team Rajasthan Royals New Zealand Cricket Team Simon Blair Doull Cricket