Jofra Archer’s decision to return home between tests “could have been a disaster” that cost English cricket “tens of millions of pounds,” according to Ashley Giles.
Archer was thrown on the England side for the second Test against the West Indies after it emerged that he had interrupted his journey between the Ageas Bowl and the Emirates Old Trafford by making a brief but unauthorized visit to his home in Brighton.
While Archer insists that he was only at home for about an hour, it is understood that he had contact with at least one other person. As a result, he exposed himself and, potentially, everyone else involved in the series to an increased threat from the Covid-19 virus.
Archer is currently isolated in his hotel room on the Manchester floor. You will not be allowed face-to-face contact for five days. He is expected to be reinstated into the full squad the day after the completion of the second test. The curtains on his hotel room, which looked out over the Old Trafford countryside, remained closed Thursday.
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Now Giles, the managing director of England’s men’s teams, says Archer will have to undergo a disciplinary process that could result in a longer absence from the game.
“This could have been a disaster,” said Giles. “The ripple effect of this little act could have cost us tens of millions of pounds.”
“I don’t think Jofra was able to understand the potential effect. We made it clear what we were expecting, but maybe he didn’t quite understand it.”
“There has to be consequences for every action and there will be a process we will go through. There will be a disciplinary process. That is all I want to say about it, as it is an employment issue.”
But while Giles was clear that Archer had erred in his judgment, he was eager to register his support for a player he considers “a great asset to this team.” And he made a distinction between the case of Archer and Alex Hales, who is excluded from England’s limited team after a couple of disciplinary failures. As Giles points out, this is Archer’s first indiscretion.
“That balance with support is equally important in this case,” said Giles. “We have all made mistakes. Jofra will learn from this. We will support him and move on.”
“I don’t think confidence is something lost or gained in an incident. Jofra has been around this team as long as I have. This is the first problem I’ve had with him. They [Archer and Hales] they are different in that
“Jofra has been a very good addition to this team. He is an excellent young man, incredibly educated, hard working and a great asset to this team. This time he was wrong.”
The trip came to light when Archer mentioned it, in passing, to a support staff member in training on Wednesday. That support staff member felt it was their duty to inform the medical staff and from there matters escalated fairly quickly. Some members of the team’s management were briefed around 10 pmel Wednesday night, while the players were briefed at 7.50 am on the morning of the game.
Archer claims he only saw one other person and they were quickly contacted and tested. The test result was negative.
While the ECB considers the risk of transmission of the virus to be low, they were concerned about the reaction of other touring teams. If any of those sides, especially Australia, which is understood to be about to confirm their tour in September, concludes that the ECB’s protocols are not enough to guarantee the safety of their players, there is a possibility that they will cancel Tours. That would have catastrophic consequences for gambling finances in England and Wales.
As a result, ECB officials held talks with their counterparts at Cricket West Indies, the PCB, Cricket Ireland and Cricket Australia on Thursday. The ECB also contacted the UK government’s DCMS (Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport), who sanctioned this series after they were satisfied by the ECB about its security protocols and could, in an extreme case, withdraw your support. Almost 50,000 people have died from the virus so far in the UK and the country is only now gradually emerging from the blockade.
“We have great respect for the West Indies who come here and play this series,” said Giles. “And we risk jeopardizing all of that with a single decision. We are responsible and responsible.
“We are asking many of the players to stay in these environments for long periods, but it is for good reason. With the help of the government and the opposition, these series were created under these conditions with these protocols and they all have to comply.” for them.”
There has been speculation about the policy of players driving their own cars between places. The ECB insists that this was based on medical advice, as it avoids the need for players to spend hours on coach trips breathing the same air.
“The advice we had was that it would be safer to keep players away from each other,” said Giles. “If there was an infection and you have everyone on a bus, there would be a problem.”
There have also been comparisons to the decision to allow Phil Simmons, the West Indies coach, to attend his father-in-law’s funeral during this tour. The key difference on that occasion is that Simmons’ trip was sanctioned in advance, so his return to the bio-safe bubble was supervised by doctors. As a result, he spent five days in isolation and was twice screened for the virus before being allowed to integrate with the rest of the squad. Archer, by contrast, trained with the squad on Tuesday and, in the worst case, could have exposed them to the virus. Only after that session did his detour come to light.
The identity of the person seen by Archer in Brighton remains unclear. While it was speculated that it was their Sussex and at some point their England teammate Chris Jordan, the couple live in adjoining flats and are close friends, Jordan declined to confirm or deny the suggestion. Jordan is recovering from an operation on his right bicep that could keep him out of the season.
“Jofra has shown how sorry he is, but he’s clearly very disappointing for the entire group,” said Giles. “But he is a young man and young people make mistakes. He has to learn from that.”
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