Australia vice-captain Steve Smith responded sarcastically to rumours that Jofra Archer had been ruled out of the next Ashes, which begin on Tuesday, May 16.
This was in response to “Code Cricket” tweeting that the England bowler terrorised Australian batsmen four years ago. It went on to say that the visitors, especially Steve Smith, may now breathe a sigh of relief since Archer is now set to miss the Ashes in 2023.
Code Cricket stated in a tweet:
“England paceman @JofraArcher terrorised Australia’s batsmen four years ago. But Steve Smith and co can breathe a huge sigh of relief after an update from England’s medical staff this evening.”
Smith responded, saying:
“Terrorised? Remind me when I was dismissed by him.”
The news comes after England Cricket Board announced that Archer has been ruled out for the whole summer owing to a reoccurring stress fracture in his right elbow, which made him withdraw from IPL 2023 mid-season.
The ECB announced in a statement:
“Sussex fast bowler Jofra Archer has been ruled out for the rest of the summer after recent scans revealed he has sustained a recurrence of a stress fracture to his right elbow. He will now spend time with the England and Sussex medical teams, who will work on his injury management.”
For those who are unaware, Archer has never dismissed Smith throughout his career. When it comes to head-to-head, right-handed batter has scored 94 runs off 164 balls in Tests and 16 runs off 30 balls in 50-over forms.
However, it’s worth noting that England’s pace caused Smith problems with his bouncers during that series. He took 22 wickets in four Tests during the 2019 Ashes series, which concluded in a draw.
Steve Smith is presently playing in the County Championship for Cheteshwar Pujara.
Steve Smith is presently captaining Sussex in the County Championship Division Two alongside Cheteshwar Pujara.
The right-handed batter made his debut recently against Worcestershire but failed to impress with the bat, scoring only 30 runs. He also only made three runs against Leicestershire.
Smith has scored just 145 runs in four Tests away from home during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
The 33-year-old will now aim to regain his form ahead of ICC WTC final against India, which will begin on June 7 at the Oval in London.
