Jofra Archer pleasantly shocked everyone at Lord’s. In the last four years, the express pacer had bowled a mere 18 overs with the red ball. That too happened about two weeks before he made his Test return. By all accounts, one could say he was undercooked.
Archer’s dream Test return
Expectations, given his talent, have always been high, but realistically, one wasn’t sure whether he would be able to perform in Test cricket just yet. Three balls into his return, Archer had already taken a wicket. It wasn’t a strangle down leg or a mistimed shot, but an absolute snorter that Yashasvi Jaiswal failed to play.
He one-upped himself in the second innings, dismissing Jaiswal again. Then, he clean bowled Rishabh Pant and took an outstanding catch in his follow-through to send Washington Sundar. Notably, his pace was high as ever. Archer delivered his two quickest spells in Test cricket at Lord’s, clocking 150 kmph on multiple occasions.
Wants to play the remaining India Tests
On top of this, England won and took a 2-1 lead in the 5-match Test series against India. But the question remains, will Archer play at Manchester? His body hasn’t gone through the rigours of red-ball cricket. The England management doesn’t know how the body will react. They are already eyeing the Ashes and won’t want to risk anything right now.
But Archer is ready. He doesn’t just want to play at Old Trafford but also at the Oval. “I can play the other two if they let me. I don’t want to lose this series,” Archer told Sky Sports. “I told Keysy (ECB managing director Rob Key) that I wanted to play the Test summer and I wanted to play the Ashes. I think one tick is already there, and I will do everything possible in my power to be on the plane in November, or just before,” he added.
Archer knows that Brydon Carse was batting with a toe injury and has played three matches on the trot. His captain, Ben Stokes, was limping during the third Test and yet bowled two 9-over spells in the fourth innings. Taking all of this into account, he wants to play and win the series for England.
“Test cricket is the format which would have taken the most time to come back to. I played 50 over and T20 for the last year, year and a half, two years. I think the mentality of the team under Baz (coach Brendon McCullum) suits the way I like to play my cricket, so I just couldn’t wait to get back and actually do it. I think everybody put their body on the line, so it’d be a bit bad if I didn’t as well. Most of the last day is a blur. It’s nice to bowl fast, but getting wickets is the most important thing,” Archer concluded.
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