It is difficult being Jofra Archer, really difficult. He is such a classy talent but injuries have taken a toll and he has had to miss most of 2021 and it does not look any different in 2022. Recently, IPL announced the list of players who will be going under the hammer. Jofra Archer was one of them. Now the question is how can Archer play when he is injured? Well, here is the answer – the England Cricket Board have recently said that Archer can participate in the auction but he will be available to play from 2023. The rule of IPL also says that the franchise which buys Archer will not be allowed a replacement for this season. A tough decision has to be made by all the teams here.
No doubt, Archer is a world-class bowler and any team will be lucky to have him on their side but seeing that he will be missing the 2022 season, is it worth taking the risk buying him this season? I don’t think so. Many teams need a fast bowler like Archer but in going for Archer this year, they will have only 7 overseas options which can harm them at a later stage. Another point is that the teams might lose out on a fine player in going for Archer. The only boon I could find is that many teams might not bid for him so he can be bought for a cheaper price. The franchises might think this way but they should take into account, their chances of winning might go down and they should not sacrifice that for any reason. The IPL auction player list has many options from fast bowlers, like a Mark Wood, Kagiso Rabada and many others to go with and then Archer can be bought in the next season when he will be available for the whole season.
