Simon Doull was absolutely furious about Jofra Archer’s decision of now being available for England’s 1st Test against New Zealand at Lord’s
Published: June 3, 2026, 8:48 PM IST
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Rajasthan Royals’ Jofra Archer celebrates the wicket of Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Abhishek Sharma during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 Eliminator match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh PCA Stadium in New Chandigarh on Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Photo: IANS)
Former New Zealand cricketer and renowned commentator Simon Doull did not hold back when speaking about England’s frontline pacer Jofra Archer missing the first Test match of the English summer against the Kiwis who are touring the UK for a 3-match red-ball series.
While England has only released the squad for the 1st Test match, Jofra Archer is expected to miss the entirety of the series. The primary reason behind the right-arm pacer’s absence is not injury but to manage his workload after nearly spending 6 months on the road.
Jofra Archer has been rigorously travelling, first for ICC T20 World Cup 2026 followed by the 3-month long Indian Premier League season. Archer was a key player behind Rajasthan Royals’ charge to the playoffs where they eventually lost to the Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2. Archer had a very good season for the Royals, scalping 25 wickets in 16 outings with a best of 3/17.
He flew over to Barbados for a short break after Rajasthan’s elimination but that has not sat well with former Kiwi bowler Simon Doull.
While discussing about the series in a recent chat with Nasser Hussain, Simon Doull called Jofra Archer’s decision to sit out for the 1st Test as “absolutely ludicrous”. “It’s ludicrous, absolutely ludicrous. How are you paying this guy up to a million pound a year and he’s not available for your first Test match? It’s absolutely ludicrous.” – Simon Doull said via Sky Sports.
Simon Doull calls Jofra Archer’s decision as ‘ludicrous’
Simon Doull went on to further bash the English Cricket Board for not having a thorough discussion with Rajasthan Royals’ head coach Kumar Sangakkara about sending Jofra Archer back to England for the 3-match Test series, which is crucial for England’s desire to reach the ICC World Test Championship 2027 final.
“And why are the ECB not then sending someone out there or having discussions with Kumar Sangakkara, with the team saying we need him to be doing this. We need him to be ready for Test match cricket.” – Doull added.
Lastly, Simon Doull questioned Jofra Archer’s seriousness about playing Test cricket for England, stating that he could have bowled 6 to 7 overs everyday with the red-ball in order to stay prepared for the series.
We have allowed him to come to you for this 8-week period, in between days, he needs to be bowling 5 overs, 6 overs, 7 overs with the red ball so he’s ready to go. And there’s enough time. If you are doing that in between games, there is enough time to come back here for a week and get ready for a Test match. There is no issue with that so I think it’s completely wrong.” – Simon Doull concluded.
The 1st Test of the 3-match series between England and New Zealand begins from tomorrow at the Lord’s Stadium.
