England Hope To Have Jofra Archer Back Against India After Lengthy Lay-Off
England fast bowler Jofra Archer could make his long-awaited Test return as soon as next month's second match against India, selector Luke Wright said on Thursday. A 14-man squad will travel to Headingley for the first of a five-match series, with Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Jamie Overton and Jacob Bethell all included after missing England's rout of Zimbabwe in a one-off Test at Trent Bridge last month. Archer was not considered for the first Test against India due to a broken thumb suffered while fielding in the Indian Premier League.
It was the latest in a long line of injuries -- mainly to his elbow and back -- that have kept him out of Test action for more than four years.
Despite his lengthy absence from red-ball internationals, express quick Archer is still regarded as a potential match-winner when England look to regain the Ashes in Australia during a 2025/26 tour.
England now have a plan to get Archer ready for the second Test against India at Edgbaston in early July that would see the Barbados-born 30-year-old featuring for Sussex's 2nd XI followed by a County Championship game against Durham starting on June 22.
If Archer comes through both matches with a clean bill of health, he could yet add to his tally of 13 Test caps after launching his international career in spectacular style in 2019 when he helped England win the 50-over World Cup and starred in a drawn Ashes series.
"If things go well, he should be available for the second Test," Wright told reporters.
"He's got to keep ticking off every day and getting no sort of setbacks, but if all goes well and Jofra gets through that Durham game, then he's available potentially for selection for that second Test.
"We'll watch him in that game for Sussex and see where he's at. He's such a talent, it doesn't take him too long to get up to speed."
England, with Gus Atkinson absent following a hamstring strain sustained during the Zimbabwe game, are expected to opt for a pace attack of Carse, Woakes and Josh Tongue in the first Test against India.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
40 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Erling Haaland scores again as Norway crushes Italy in World Cup qualifier and Croatia cruises
Erling Haaland scored and Norway humbled Italy 3-0 for the first time in 25 years in qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. Haaland on Friday (June 6, 2025) collected a through ball from playmaker Martin Odegaard and rounded goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma in the box for the third goal three minutes before halftime. It was his 41st goal in his 42nd match for Norway to the delight of the spectators at Ullevaal Stadium in Oslo, including King Harald V of Norway. Haaland also scored when Moldova was beaten 5-0 and Israel 4-2. Norway remained perfect in qualifying after three games in Europe Group I. Striker Alexander Sorloth received a precise pass from Antonio Nusa then beat Donnarumma with a left foot shot. Nusa, the 20-year-old attacking midfielder, was a constant threat to the Italian defense. He left behind two defenders and doubled the advantage with a rising shot from inside the area. Italy was missing some regulars for its first qualifying match, while others failed to impress, including Mateo Retegui, the best Serie A scorer. Defenders Alessandro Buongiorno and Mattia Gabbia, defensive midfielder Manuel Locatelli and forward Moise Kean were all injured while key center back Francesco Acerbi, who was meant to mark Haaland, turned down his callup. Diego Coppola played centre back in the three-man defensive line used by coach Luciano Spalletti that was not able to stop Norway. Norway dominates, Italy in trouble In the other Group I game, Israel won in Estonia 3-1 for a second win and second place. The Azzurri are under pressure from the start of their qualifying after failing to reach the last two World Cups. Winning the group is the only way to ensure direct qualification to next year's tournament in North America. The second-placed team goes into the playoffs — the stage where Italy was eliminated by Sweden and North Macedonia and ruled out of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, respectively. A four-time World Cup champion, the only other time Italy didn't qualify was for the 1958 edition. Italy hosts Moldova on Monday when Norway will be in action at Estonia. Croatia cruises, Belgium held Croatia opened its qualifying with a 7-0 rout of minnow Gibraltar. Mario Pašalic and Ante Budimir struck twice for Croatia within two minutes to break the deadlock after half an hour. In the second half, substitutes Andrek Kramaric and Franjo Ivanovis scored a couple each and Ivan Perisic piled on. Croatia was runner-up in the 2018 World Cup and third in 2022. In the same Group L, Adam Hložek and Patrik Schick each scored as the unbeaten Czech Republic beat Montenegro 2-0 for a third straight win. Belgium was 1-0 up on a goal by defender Maxim De Cuyper but Ezgjan Alioski salvaged a draw for North Macedonia in a surprise in Group J. Wales tops the group with seven points from three games after a 3-0 victory over Liechtenstein. North Macedonia was two points behind. Europe to contribute a third of all teams Europe will have 16 teams in the expanded 48-team field for the World Cup. They will come from the winners of the 12 qualifying groups plus four from a playoff of the 12 group runners-up together with four best-ranked group winners in the Nations League that don't finish first or second in the qualifying. The group stage of European qualifying runs through November.
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers: Haaland scores as Norway thrashes Italy; Croatia, Czechia win; Belgium draws
Erling Haaland scored as Norway humbled Italy 3-0 for the first time in 25 years in qualifying for the 2026 World Cup on Friday. Haaland collected a through ball from playmaker Martin Odegaard and rounded goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma in the box for the third goal three minutes before half-time. It was his 41st goal in his 42nd match for Norway to the delight of the spectators at Ullevaal Stadium in Oslo, including King Harald V of Norway. Haaland also scored when Moldova was beaten 5-0 and Israel 4-2. Norway remained perfect in qualifying after three games in Europe Group I. Striker Alexander Sorloth received a precise pass from Antonio Nusa and then beat Donnarumma with a left-footed shot. Nusa, the 20-year-old attacking midfielder, was a constant threat to the Italian defence. He left behind two defenders and doubled the advantage with a rising shot from inside the area. Italy was missing some regulars for its first qualifying match, while others failed to impress, including Mateo Retegui, the best Serie A scorer. Defenders Alessandro Buongiorno and Mattia Gabbia, defensive midfielder Manuel Locatelli and forward Moise Kean were all injured, while key centre back Francesco Acerbi, who was meant to mark Haaland, turned down his call-up. Diego Coppola played centre back in the three-man defensive line used by coach Luciano Spalletti, which was not able to stop Norway. In the other Group I game, Israel won in Estonia 3-1 for a second win and second place. The Azzurri are under pressure from the start of their qualifying after failing to reach the last two World Cups. Winning the group is the only way to ensure direct qualification to next year's tournament in North America. The second-placed team goes into the playoffs — the stage where Italy was eliminated by Sweden and North Macedonia and ruled out of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, respectively. A four-time World Cup champion, the only other time not to qualify was for the 1958 edition. Italy hosts Moldova on Monday, when Norway will be in action against Estonia. Croatia opened its qualifying with a 7-0 rout of minnow Gibraltar. Mario Pašalić and Ante Budimir struck once each for Croatia within two minutes to break the deadlock after half an hour. In the second half, substitutes Andrek Kramaric and Franjo Ivanovis scored a couple each, and Ivan Perisic piled on. Croatia was runner-up in the 2018 World Cup and third in 2022. In the same Group L, Adam Hložek and Patrik Schick each scored as the unbeaten Czech Republic beat Montenegro 2-0 for a third straight win. Belgium was 1-0 up on a goal by defender Maxim De Cuyper, but Ezgjan Alioski salvaged a draw for North Macedonia in a surprise in Group J. Wales tops the group with seven points from three games after a 3-0 victory over Liechtenstein. North Macedonia was two points behind. Europe will have 16 teams in the expanded 48-team field for the World Cup. They will come from the winners of the 12 qualifying groups, plus four from a playoff of the 12 group runners-up, together with the four best-ranked group winners in the Nations League that don't finish first or second in the qualifying. The group stage of European qualifying runs through November.
Hans India
an hour ago
- Hans India
Indian compound archers crash out at World Cup Stage 3
Antalya: Indian compound archers disappointed at the Archery World Cup Stage 3 as none of them managed to reach the medal rounds in the individual and mixed categories here on Friday. India, who finished second behind South Korea with two gold, one silver, and four bronze medals at the previous stage in Shanghai, are yet to open their medal account here. Madhura Dhamangaonkar, the fourth seed and winner of the last World Cup, was ousted in the quarterfinals by fifth-seeded Mariana Bernal of Mexico. Madhura lost 152-159 in the women's individual section. Mariana was consistent throughout, while Madhura struggled to find her rhythm after an opening round of 29 out of a possible 33. World champion Aditi Swami also exited in the last-eight stage, going down 147-152 to Mexico's second-seeded Andrea Becerra.
