Jofra Archer, who grew up in Barbados, could find a place in England’s 2019 World Cup squad following the change in eligibility rules by the England Cricket Board in a board meeting at Lord’s on Wednesday. ECB has allowed players who have not been born but lived in the United Kingdom for three years to be a part of the England team. Earlier, a player needed to reside in the UK for seven years to have a chance to be selected in the national squad.
The 23-year-old started playing for Sussex in 2015 and has become a star attraction for several T20 leagues around the world. The Rajasthan Royals bagged the all-rounder for Rs 7.2 crore last year.
ALSO READ: ‘Cricket is a team sport’: Ben Stokes hits back at Sanjay Manjrekar after ‘chef’ jibe
The amendment in the eligibility rules is with effect from 1 January 2019 which means that Archer could make his England debut when the team travels to the West Indies in that month. Archer tweeted that he would love to make his international debut in front of his family.
It may or may not happen but I would love to debut in front of my family 🤞🏾
— Jofra Archer (@craig_arch) November 29, 2018
The new eligibility rules for players in England are as follows:
1. British Citizenship.
2. Either born in England/Wales, or 3 years residence (a total of 210 days/year April-March).
3. Not played as a local player in professional international or domestic cricket in a Full Member country within the last 3 years.
With Mark Wood battling fitness issues and Liam Plunkett not getting any younger, Archer could be the perfect quick bowler for England in the World Cup.
First Published: Nov 29, 2018 21:08 IST
