England's disheartening Ashes tour has taken another hit as their player of the series, Jofra Archer, has been sidelined due to a new injury. Archer will not participate in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne or the New Year match in Sydney after being diagnosed with a strain on his left side and is replaced by Gus Atkinson.

The 30-year-old bowler has spent four years grappling with various fitness issues, including stress fractures of the back and right elbow. However, he has been exceptional since making his long-awaited return to red-ball cricket against India over the summer. Now, after playing in each of the first three Tests against Australia, he has succumbed once again.

He joined the squad for training on Christmas Eve at the MCG, but did not take part in practice. A spokesperson later confirmed that he would be out for the remainder of the trip.

This is sure to raise questions about Archer's future. In the short term, he had been slated for a key role at the T20 World Cup and must now wait for the results of further scans upon his return to the United Kingdom.

In the long term, there are renewed concerns about his body's ability to withstand the rigours of five-day cricket. Archer recently signed a new two-year contract with the ECB, but this latest setback, despite being handled with extreme caution upon his return to action, means alarm bells will be ringing.

He has bowled a total of 80 overs in the games at Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide, taking nine wickets at 27.11 and maintaining the lowest strike-rate in the touring attack. In the third Test, he emerged as a beacon of hope in an increasingly disastrous tour, taking five wickets for 53 runs in the first innings and scoring 51 runs.

Meanwhile, Ollie Pope has been replaced at number three by Jacob Bethell. Pope has been under immense scrutiny with his average of 17 runs across 16 Ashes innings and was stripped of the vice-captaincy before the tour.