On Jofra Archer's Injury, Mumbai Indians Coach Gives Important Update

Mumbai Indians (MI) pacer Jofra Archer's absence from the IPL 2023 match against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) has raised questions regarding his fitness. Archer, who missed the entire IPL 2022 due to a back issue, made his MI debut in their opening game against the Royal Challengers Bangalore. He went wicketless and conceded 33 runs. However, Archer missed the game against CSK, with Jason Behrendorff replacing him in the playing XI. Speaking after the game against CSK, MI head coach Mark Boucher has provided an update on Archer's fitness.

Boucher revealed that the 28-year-old picked up a "little niggle" and the medical team is looking after him.

"He (Archer) has picked up a little niggle, and we have a fantastic medical team looking after him. He's obviously a massive player for us as well, so hopefully, you know they can pass him fit sometime soon," Boucher said at the post-match press conference.

"We will always look after the player, so if he's not ready to put his hand at play, then we'll look after him as well. But we're following the medical advice from our team at the moment. So yeah, hopefully, he's up for selection pretty soon," he added.

Recently, Archer admitted that playing more than one Ashes Test during the summer would be a "bonus" for him after his return from injury, which kept him out of the sport for nearly two years.

MI had bought Archer for Rs 8 crore during the IPL 2022 mega auction, despite knowing that he won't take part in the tournament.

With Bumrah already out of the entire IPL 2023, MI can't afford to lose Archer as well.