'Lay low for a while': Estwick's advice for Jofra Archer
Jul 23, 2020
Manchester [UK], July 23 : Roddy Estwick, the West Indies assistant coach, has advised England's Jofra Archer to stay low for a while after the pacer revealed that he was subjected to racial abuse on social media.
His remark comes following Archer's column in the Daily Mail in which he described a career in sport as "fickle", and added that he had decided that enough was enough after receiving racist abuse on his Instagram account.
Estwick had mentored Archer as a young cricketer in Barbados.
"Jofra will be fine, I've been in constant contact with him. I wasn't prepared to leave him out there on a limb and I've been in constant dialogue, talking to him and trying to reassure him that we all make mistakes and you learn from them and move on," ESPNCricinfo quoted Estwick as saying.
"It's obviously disappointing to hear a player being racially abused but it does happen. I've seen him come out and say he's got to try and stay off social media a bit and that's a start - I think if you're off social media, they can't racially abuse you from there. He's got to lay low for a while. He knows what's coming, so he's just got to lay low, focus on his game, focus on getting back on the park, and focus on the people that you can trust and the people that are there for you, and try to block out the rest," he added.
Archer was excluded from England's squad for the second Test for breaking the team's bio-secure protocols and was sent into five-day isolation. The pacer revealed that it was during this period that he received racist abuse on social media.
The 25-year-old fast bowler was also fined an undisclosed amount and was given an official written warning.
He spent almost the entire second Test in his hotel room at Emirates Old Trafford, unable to have face-to-face contact with anyone.
He underwent two coronavirus tests in that period, both of which proved negative.
He has been cleared to re-join the England squad ahead of the third Test against West Indies.
Currently, the series between England and West Indies is tied at 1-1. If England has to retain the Wisden Trophy, then it needs to win the final Test.
The third and final Test will be played at Manchester from Friday, July 24.
