LONDON: England’s right-arm speedster Jofra Archer has been ruled out of the summer season due to a stress fracture of the lower back, England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) confirmed on Thursday.

Archer, who last played for England in March 2021 after sustaining an elbow injury, hoped to make his comeback for Sussex in the T20 Blast next week.

The latest setback in the form of a stress fracture of the lower back, however, has shattered the hopes of the right-arm pacer’s comeback.

Archer has undergone three surgeries in the span of the last 14 months, one on his hand to remove a piece of glass and two on his elbow. The right-arm pacer will now undergo back surgery in December.

The 2019 World Cup winner made an abortive comeback for his side Sussex and could only play one T20 Blast and a Royal London Cup warm-up match before being diagnosed with a back injury.

Archer also trained with the England team as a part of his rehabilitation in Barbados during their Test and T20I tour to the West Indies earlier this year.

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