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Jofra Archer, who was chosen to play for England against India at Lord’s on Thursday, will play his first Test match in more than four years.
With the series tied at 1-1, the 30-year-old’s inclusion makes the England team’s only change for the crucial third Test.
Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse both showed signs of fatigue in their respective heavy defeats at Edgbaston, but Josh Tongue replaces Archer.
Mark Wood, a pace bowler, and Archer trained at Lord’s the same day that his place was chosen for the England XI was confirmed as they continued their recovery from a knee injury.
Wood was anticipated to miss the entire five-match series against India, but the Durham native is hoping to play the final Test there. The intriguing possibility of Archer and Wood playing in the same XI, which has only been done once in Test cricket, comes up.
Archer has taken 42 wickets in 13 previous Tests, but he has struggled with back and elbow injuries since his most recent one, which was against India in 2021. Since Archer last appeared in his final Test, England has played 53. Between caps, there will be 1, 595 days.
Archer’s future involvement in Test cricket seemed highly uncertain at the time, and there were instances where his entire career was in doubt.
A comeback at Lord’s, one of Archer’s two most memorable appearances in his first year of 2019, is the culmination of that plan.
In England’s heart-wrenching World Cup victory over New Zealand, Archer bowled the super over, and he then made his Test debut against Australia a few weeks later.
With his electrifying spell, falling and concussing Australian run-machine Steve Smith, he immediately had an impact.
Archer’s return has asymmetry, but there are still risks associated with it. In Sussex’s two-weeklong trip to Durham, he only played one top-notch match before the third Test. He won one wicket with 18 overs.
Although Archer’s inclusion was anticipated, it may surprise England to have made no further adjustments to their pace attack.
Woakes, 36, has a stellar Lord’s record despite only taking three wickets in the series. He has taken 32 wickets on this field on average for under 13 in seven previous Tests.
Carse appeared to be struggling with a foot issue that forced him to leave the beginning of the year, but he has since been passed fit.
No place is left for Jamie Overton or Sam Cook. As he recovers from a hamstring injury, gus Atkinson is also a member of the squad.
related subjects
- England Men’s Cricket Team
- India
- Sussex
- Cricket
Source: BBC
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