On a day when Jos Buttler crackled with the bat and regular wickets derailed Pakistan’s pursuit, the biggest advantage for England at the start of their preparation for the T20 World Cup was an unscathed return of Jofra Archer, 62 weeks since his last selection.
It was a mistreatd way back for Archer, a long-standing struggle with stress fractures on the elbow that made him wonder if another setback could be overcome. Playing a full-fledged role on the field was the first checkbox, and when England defended their 183 for seven for a 23-point victory and a 1-0 lead, the sharpie was able to get out of the pot.
If there were nerves, they were not obvious. Rust was probably inevitable, with nets and club games unable to reproduce the intensity of a full house at Edgbaston, and Archer’s first over caught in the middle of a 21-ball burn 45 by Fakhar Zaman for 15 runs.
England smack Pakistan by 23 points in the Men’s second international T20-as It Happened
But in the end the figures pointed to two for 28 from four overs, and perhaps just as encouragingly 90 miles an hour had been exceeded with the speed gun.
Buttler said of him: “I thought he was brilliant. You can see the emotion by taking back wickets. He won’t be the old Jofra Archer right away, but it was a really positive performance. It’s absolutely about getting into Jofra, but also taking care of Him. I thought the whole bowling group was brilliant.”
Given the profit margin, three days after his planned comeback in Leeds had come to naught, Archer’s cameo with bat was also handy. Buttler had been at his clinical best at the top, a 51-ball 84 taking his team to 144 for two, before a collapse of five for 39 followed. Among those swings, there was an unsmacken 12 from Archer, who tipped his first ball for four before making Mohammad Amir well-known for six on long.
However, the acid test would still take place with the ball, with Archer offering a reminder of the wicket–to-wicket pressurize last seen at home and with fans in the stands a year earlier. After a tricky first set of six, he returned for the twelfth, with the burly Azam Khan chipping off to cover the first ball to make 91 for five; Imad Wasim then made a hole for himself in the last rites. Solid work, with the promise of more to follow.
