- By Namrata Vijay
- Sun, 06 Jul 2025 06:06 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
IND vs ENG 2nd Test: Ex-England skipper Michael Vaughan has sent a stern warning to the host about not expecting too much from Jofra Archer if he is picked for the third Test match against India, which will be held at Lord's. He emphasized that the team looks at Archer as a solution to their bowling problems during the ongoing series.
Archer is supposed to make a comeback to the longest format after almost four years as the Ben Stokes-led side plans to change their pace attack after the visitors' brilliant batting performance in Birmingham. Archer has represented England in 13 Test matches, where he has taken 42 wickets at a staggering average of 31.04.
“I can understand, I have a real concern about Jofra playing next week, I do. I can’t see how his body is going to be able to cope with a five-day match on the back of that one day in the field. But I can understand why England are wrapping him in cotton wool because he is that X-Factor and he has got that ability. We all go back to that spell that he bowled to Steve Smith at Lord’s. It was just up there with the great, great spells in Test match cricket. But after that spell, what has Jofra done in Test match cricket? So we are kind of looking at Jofra as if he is the savior of everything. We have got to be very, very careful on the player and the human being that we don’t expect too much too soon," Vaughan was quoted as saying on the Test match special.
Ex-England cricketer Mark Butcher has reckoned that including Archer for the third Test match is a huge risk. “The issue is, with all of these injuries and the amount of time that Jofra has been out of the game, you have no idea how he is going to react to a full day in the field – never mind three of them. England have fielded on all four days of this Test match so far. You add that to that face that even when England are batting well, they don’t bat for very long, so before you know it the bowlers are back out there again," Butcher was quoted as saying on Sky Sports.
Who Can England Drop In Next Test?
England's star off-spinner Shoaib Bashir has taken a few wickets but has given away lots of runs. Although, they also have Jacob Bethell, who is a batter that can also bat some spin, in reserve, and Butcher said that replacing a specialist spinner with a part-timer isn't justified.
“I think Bashir is getting better all the time. The number of bad balls – rank drag-down deliveries, full tosses – he has almost wiped them out. He has also shown good command of drop and drift and gets plenty of revs on the ball but he just hasn’t had the conditions. If England had wanted a finished article, somebody that can bat down at No. 8 and can be a proper reliable spin bowler, then Liam Dawson would have played 50 Test matches, but for whatever reason he has not figured. I also don’t think you should be replacing a young spin bowler who has just gone to 50 Test wickets with one that is a part-time spin bowler and a top-order batter. That is not the answer at all. England have been correct under Ben Stokes to want a specialist spin bowler in any line-up, for any conditions. Going for a bit of Jacob Bethell, and a bit of Joe Root and that will do us… it won’t. Bethell is a discussion for another time, in terms of your top-order batting, but he’s not the answer as a spin bowler," he concluded.