'Elbow Has Been Troublesome,' Andrew Strauss on Jofra Archer's Fitness

image-lh1qqutgJofra is looked at as England's mainstay for Ashes 2023 (Twitter) 

With 'The Ashes 2023' inching ever-so-close to the start, both England and Australia have their concerns to sort out. The 2023 edition of the five-test series will begin on June 16 in England after Australia finishes its ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against India on June 11.

Ahead of the series, former captain Andrew Strauss said that England would be concerned over the fitness of Jofra Archer, who is currently playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the Mumbai Indians.

Archer, who made an international comeback during England's tour of Bangladesh in January, has already missed five matches for MI this season due to a light niggle.

Speaking to SKY Sports, Strauss, who will be stepping down from both his posts within the England and Wales Cricket Broad (ECB, expects the upcoming Ashes series to be compelling and exciting.


Here's what Strauss said

"It has to be (a concern), without knowing the details of it, it's obviously hard to speculate. That elbow has been troublesome for a long period now, a number of different injuries with it. It's easy to be over cautious, and perhaps that's what is happening now, but he would be a significant loss if he wasn't there for the Ashes."

"It is going to be a tough series I think, two teams that will go hammer and tongs against each other. I think it's going to be compelling viewing, really exciting."

Archer, 28, who last played a Test in 2021, finished The Ashes 2019 as the third-highest wicket-taker (22), which ended tied 2-2. 

Archer is expected to play in Mumbai's upcoming home game against the Rajasthan Royals on Sunday.