Archer makes long-awaited return to England Test squad

Jofra Archer is in line for a first Test appearance in more than four years after being named in England's 14-man squad for next week's match against India at Edgbaston.

The 30-year-old made a thrilling start to international cricket in 2019 but has not played a Test since 2021 after a series of injuries.

A recurring stress fracture in his elbow has required multiple operations, while a stress fracture in his back ruled him out of an entire summer in 2022. Archer returned to white-ball cricket in early 2023 but when the elbow issue returned he missed the summer once more.

Archer is the only addition to an otherwise unchanged squad from England's thrilling first-Test win at Headingley. The second Test in Birmingham begins on Wednesday.

For Archer and England this is a significant moment.

His recovery has been carefully managed - until this month a diet exclusively of white-ball cricket - in the hope he could work towards a return this summer and in the Ashes against Australia this winter.

Archer played his first red-ball match since May 2021 this week and returned figures of 1-32 from 18 overs in the only innings Sussex bowled on their trip to Durham.

After bowling in whites for the first time in 1,501 days, he said he felt ready to return to Test cricket.

"Yeah. I guess so," he said.

"I just want to get through the game. I'm glad I've finished a day of four-day cricket."

Archer was viewed as a generational talent after he made his international debut six years ago.

He bowled the deciding super over in England's World Cup win and later that summer bowled an electric spell of short bowling to Steve Smith in the Ashes, which ended when the Australia batter was hit in the neck and had to retire hurt.

Archer took 22 wickets at 20.27 across four Tests in that series and 42 from 13 Tests overall, including three five-wicket hauls.

His elbow problems began the following winter, however, when he was ruled out of a Test in South Africa with discomfort.

He struggled through the next year across formats before undergoing surgery on the elbow in May 2021 - three months after his most recent Test, the third against India in Ahmedabad that February.

Archer's return eases pressure on an England fast-bowling department that has been hit by a number of injuries.

Mark Wood, Gus Atkinson, Olly Stone, Josh Hull and the uncapped Sonny Baker have all been sidelined.

Archer joins Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Sam Cook and Jamie Overton as fast bowlers in the squad.

Woakes, Carse and Tongue played in the win at Headingley and England could be tempted to stick with the same XI at Edgbaston.

After the win in Leeds, former England captain Michael Vaughan told Test Match Special: "The good thing is that Jofra is back in the equation - but I'd like to see him play another four-day game.

"He's not played the longer format for four years so why, on the back of one game for Sussex against Durham, would you rush him back?

"We know the intensity at Test-match level is so different to county cricket. Let him play another four-day game - I would go with the same line-up, as long as the bowlers are fine and there are no niggles."

Sussex coach Paul Farbrace, also a former England assistant coach, told BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra: "He bowled with good pace, good accuracy and his body's in good shape which is fantastic

"We would all love to see Jofra playing for England because he makes England a much better team, and he would give them a much better chance of winning the big series.

"Let's look after him, let's be careful with him. All I will report back to them is that he bowled nicely, he looks like he's in good rhythm, he's bowled 18 overs and it's up to them whether they pick him."

One scenario could be for Archer to sit out the Edgbaston Test, spend the week around the England team, then be available for the third Test at Lord's the following week.

That is the ground where he made his Test debut in 2019, famously duelling with Australia's Steve Smith.

This is the moment England, their supporters and Archer have waited so long for, one that seemed so unlikely to arrive.

The excitement around Archer, even before he made his England debut, was immense. When he pulled on the Three Lions, he delivered. His exploits in the 2019 World Cup and Ashes that followed more than lived up to the hype.

What followed were false dawns, mis-management, injuries and misery. When Archer was ruled out of the home Ashes series in 2023, a Test return seemed impossible. Few would have blamed him for walking away to become a franchise freelancer.

Painstakingly and meticulously, Archer has battled back. He deserves immense credit for his desire to rebuild a Test career. England have stuck by him, contract after contract, in the hope their loyalty would be rewarded with more Test wickets.

In Archer's first iteration as a Test cricketer, England were starved bowlers of his high pace. Now, they have a number who can hit 90mph and above. It remains to be seen if he is the same red-ball bowler as before and where he fits into the attack.

The debate over whether Archer should have played again for Sussex is a moot point. Their next game is this Sunday and he would have been unlikely to play back-to-back Championship matches. They do not have another until 22 July.

Now England have the decision over when to unleash him. The Headingley win means team changes are unlikely, giving Archer an extra week to rev up for Lord's. What a story that would be.