Jofra Archer may be eligible to play 2019 World Cup for England

Jofra Archer's dreams of representing England in the 2019 World Cup may come true if a report in The Times is to be believed. The Barbados-born all-rounder, who is currently eligible to play for England in 2022, could play for them earlier than expected.

According to the England Cricket Board rules, a seven-year residency period has to be completed before a foreign-born is eligible to represent the England national side. The 23-year-old Archer's father is from England and needs to spend at least 210 days a year in the UK to be eligible. According to the current rules, he will be eligible to play for them in four years.

However, a new set of rules are being proposed, similar to the ICC's code, that has set its own cap on the residency period to four years. If Archer aims to make a comeback, the process will be sped up and 12 members of the ECB will have to on board.

Archer has been long linked with a future in England and has openly admitted in the past that it is his dream to play Test cricket for his father's country. He holds a British passport, and although his mother and sister live in Barbados, Jofra has been playing for Sussex since 2016.

He was purchased for Rs. 7.2 crore by the Rajasthan Royals before the 2018 IPL, and played 10 games for them, picking up 15 wickets. Before that, he rose to prominence by doing well in the Big Bash, for the Hobart Hurricanes. He has also represented the West Indies U-19 side.

“I didn’t grow up in abundant fortune. With the earnings from IPL, I can make up for the stuff that I didn’t have as a child. I can give myself and the family a better standard of living,” he had told Hindustan Times during the IPL.