England’s fast-bowling sensation, Jofra Archer feels that the world has moved on in terms of racist abuse as now there are many more multicultural places. He has quickly become a favorite with the England fans since he became eligible to play for his adopted country earlier this year.
The Sussex star benefited from England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) reducing the eligibility period from 7 years to three so he did not have to wait till 2022 to play for England. He quickly showed his worth by bowling the decisive Super Over in the thrilling World Cup final win over New Zealand.
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Archer then made his Test debut by outclassing Australia’s star batsman Steve Smith in the second Ashes Test at Lord’s which saw him miss the following match at Headingley with a concussion and in his absence, England won to level the series. It was in the fourth Test at Old Trafford that Archer was barracked by a couple of fans.
Talking about the racism, Archer said, “I was aware what the guys were saying — something about my passport — but I blanked them. It was only later that Rooty (Joe Root the England captain) said the guys got ejected. It was the first time I’d seen someone get ejected from ground because there were some abusive fans when we played Pakistan at Trent Bridge (heckling Ben Stokes).”
Archer, who says an elderly spectator at a county game with Kent had once questioned how was he playing for Sussex, said racist incidents occurred far less in cricket than football.
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The pacer further explained, “The world’s changing. It’s becoming more multicultural. A lot of people have accepted it for what it is. It’s the same with any football club in the world. Times have changed, it’s not 2007 anymore. Yeah, to let them know it’s possible. It doesn’t really matter where you’re born. If you know that cricket’s what you want to do, you never know where you’ll end up. If it happens to me, it can happen to anyone.”
Archer says being the man who bowled the decisive Super Over in the World Cup did not alter his profile.
