Jofra Archer will undergo surgery on his troublesome right elbow on Friday in his bid to remain a multi-format cricketer for England.
Archer met with a specialist on Thursday where it was agreed that surgery was the best option to try and ease the pain that he has been feeling in the elbow that has curtailed his Test career to date.
The 26-year-old is a key member of every England team thanks to his express pace that makes life uncomfortable for batsmen, but the demands of Test cricket in particular have caused his elbow to flare up time and again.
The precise nature of the injury is unclear, but it is thought to be a bone issue, either a bone spur or floating fragments of bone in the area that are causing what bowling coach Jon Lewis has described as an 'impingement' similar to ankle injuries that bowlers often suffer.
Of course there is a concern just how Archer will react following the surgery, and whether he will still be able to generate the same speeds as he has been able to, but the medics clearly believe this will give him the best chance in the long term.
And it is a huge credit to Archer and his commitment to Test cricket that he has chosen to go down this road when he could easily have given up on red ball cricket and focused entirely on the shorter forms of the game.
White-ball cricket is less of an issue because he is only required to bowl four or 10 overs in a game and there are huge varieties of pace with how he bowls.
In Test cricket though the pace needs to remain high and the work load is much greater, which is why the injury tends to become painful following a Test match.
Archer will hope that the surgery is a big success and allows him to come back into action at some point this summer in order for him to lead England's attack at the T20 World Cup in October and the Ashes that follows in December.
