Those were dark times: Archer opens up on his back injury lay-off as teenager

World Cup-winning England pace sensation Jofra Archer has opened up on his chronic back injury as a teenager, saying spending those two years on the sidelines were "dark times" as doctors feared he might not play cricket again.

Archer had suffered the injury after making it to the West Indies U-19 level before his move to England in 2015.

"Those were dark times to be honest, I spent two years out of cricket," the pacer said in a Rajasthan Royals Podcast.

"You're young and you want to play, you have got to make the most of your youth because before you know it, you're 20, 21 or even 25 if you're unlucky, and you're still trialling and hoping to get a chance.

"And then a lot of people don't take chances on guys who are a little bit older," he added.

Archer, who bowled the Super Over which won England the World Cup last year, said he was a "bit down" when doctors told him that he might not play again.

"It felt like I was missing out on my golden years. The doctor told me if he didn't see improvement, he couldn't even see me playing club cricket, so I remember leaving the office that day and I was a little bit down," he said.

"But I decided to rest and if the pain subsided, I would give it another go. And if it doesn't work then I will go back to university and take another path in life. But luckily for me I got to do what I really wanted to do in the end."
"In the end Rajasthan got me for a bit more than I thought they should have! But I was still grateful regardless, and then in the next few months I ended up being in India."