15 hours ago
In a sane world, Jofra Archer would not play for England all summer
The only cricket Archer has played at international level in the last couple of years has been white-ball. Not only does it entail bowling a limited number of overs and in very short bursts, but it does not involve spending consecutive days in the field: not merely bowling, but chasing after balls, and throwing in from the outfield. Doubtless the England management will take medical advice before picking Archer, but equally one doubts the advice will be anything other than what they wish to hear.
India might have lost at Leeds, but they still piled up all those runs. It seemed at the end of the first day that they might be on course to make 600 or 700, not 471. Human nature being what it is, and the Indian side being as talented as it is, I suspect we can bank on them not chucking away an advantageous position for a second time. How might Archer respond to spending two days, or even seven sessions, in the field while India make a massive total, and bowling 35 or 40 overs into the bargain? Nothing he has done in cricket in the last five years, including the match between Sussex and Durham, would prepare him for such a remorseless grind.
One problem with the England and Wales Cricket Board's casual attitude towards the County Championship, and the participation of international players in it, is that there is less and less long-form cricket around to provide serious time in the field, or in the middle, for those trying to break into the Test team, or to hold their place in it.
I do not detract from England's serious triumph at Leeds by saying that they were fortunate that the Indian players, despite some playing a little English county cricket, had as little first-class experience recently as their opponents.
Sussex have six more championship matches this season, three of them in September. In a sane world, Archer would play in all six and – provided he is fit enough and takes wickets – be picked to tour Australia this winter. In a sane world, July and August would not be packed with T20 matches, and there would be two or three more first-class matches in which Archer, and of course other England prospects, could show off their prowess.
Instead, the word is that the ECB has all but decided that the already sparse Championship season will be cut from 14 to 12 matches, further undermining the ability for Test talent either to develop or, as in Archer's case, be rehabilitated. Current events might convince us that Test cricket has a great future after all, but if we whittle down the nursery that trains all its players, it could prove a delusion.
