Swashbuckling England opener Jason Roy on Thursday said missing the superstar duo of Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer for the T20 World Cup is a “big shame” but insisted England has enough depth in its squad to go the distance.
Talismanic all-rounder Stokes, who played a key role in England’s maiden ODI World Cup triumph in 2019, is away on an indefinite leave for his mental well-being and to recover from a finger injury.
Archer has ruled himself out after the recurrence of a stress fracture in his right elbow.
“I wouldn’t say it’s a problem — it’s a shame. It’s definitely a shame, not having those two here but you know they’re on the same path of getting fit and healthy again,” Roy said during a virtual interaction.
England has another injury setback in all-rounder Sam Curran who has been ruled out with a lower-back injury, sustained during the IPL.
His brother Tom Curran has been drafted into the England squad as his replacement, while Reece Topley has also been added as a travelling reserve.
Roy, however, said it’s not a worry as the team has enough in its bench strength to go all the way.
“You look at our depth of the squad now, the players we have, and it’s still extremely impressive. The boys showed that they have done well in the warm up game, and they’ve been training extremely hard, so I don’t think it’s a worry at all.”
