Just when warnings were about to be issued about how the return of cricket in England should not be considered the norm but rather a cautious experiment in the resumption of the sport in times of the pandemic, England’s Jofra Archer already showed lack of education and situational awareness, robbing the second Test and England of a valuable commodity.
The reactions were fast and furious following news that England’s fast bowler, Jofra Archer, had been dropped from the second Test at Old Trafford, Manchester over breach of Covid-19 protocols. It would mean that the player would not only miss the second Test but would have to go into isolation for the duration of it and also, undergo two tests to ensure he is negative for coronavirus before he can return to the team.
The news could not come at a more debilitating time for England.
Already 1-0 down after the loss in Southampton, England face an arduous task of coming back into the series with Joe Root taking over a difficult one Test job from Ben Stokes. England caused more controversy as they claimed to rest both, James Anderson and Mark Wood, given the situation that England find themselves in. This comes on the heels of Stuart Broad being dropped from the first Test and is likely to ignite greater debates about whether the players mandate rest despite a six Test series run at home, Archer only spoiling plans further.
Although not overtly stipulated about how Archer had broken the rules apart from straying out of the boundary lines as far as bio-secure and bubble environments are concerned, it is the only logical explanation which would have warranted these measures. How this wall of security around the squads was breached will have to become the scrutiny of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) which is claiming a risk-free environment for the visiting teams, the West Indies, and also, Pakistan which is already in England.
There have been whispers that resumption of cricket in England should not be seen as one rule for all, given that the pandemic has affected nations around the world in somewhat erratic fashion and what is normal for one might be in-feasible for another. The successful staging of the first Test would have brought on the false sense of security about the game being possible which is why it is important that rules were respected and regulations maintained. As if to prove the point, it had to take an international level cricketer to not show respect to his place on the team or the situation under which sport is operating on fine lines.
Archer’s antics and the subsequent impact his actions will have not only on England’s outcome on the field but also, on cricket as a whole is to be considered, showing just how easy it is for cricketers to unwittingly make light of what is an extraordinarily difficult scenario. For him to end up in this bizarre, upending situation – not to mention a huge embarrassment and headache for the England team, it only emphasizes the importance of taking these times and these games being played under strange conditions seriously. Archer’s antics are simply put, ignorant, and blaze and might warrant more punishment than just a mandated time out. It will only add him to the liability list of the captain if players cannot take cognizance of the situation, on and off the field.
Already a controversial figure, Archer will not have helped himself after drawing the attention to his accelerated selection to the England team at last year’s ICC Cricket World Cup in 2019. With issues of racism and inclusion swirling in the air around Black Lives Matter and also, even before with him being a part of the adopted England team, Archer has not done himself or the sport any favors. With hundreds of millions of dollars on the line, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) must have something to say on this as well as time will tell.
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