White-ball cricket suits me more as its less batter-friendly, states Jofra Archer
Jofra Archer has said that he finds limited-overs cricket more suitable for his game as the onus is on the batsmen to make a move. Archer, who featured in four of England’s six Tests during the home summer, also asserted that he has no qualms in being the first change bowler in Test cricket.
England cricket introduced a new superstar to the game of cricket in the form of Jofra Archer, in the 2019 World Cup. Archer, who had just featured in three ODIs prior to the World Cup, made an instant impact as he finished at the third position in the list of highest wicket-takers, which was a big achievement. He soon made his Test debut in the Ashes and shone through with his exceptional performances. But of late, the right-arm pacer has struggled to take wickets in Tests and in fact went wicketless in the recently concluded third Test against Pakistan.
Questions about his pace and sustainability in the longest format have been aplenty, and in a column for the Daily Mail, the Barbados-born pacer, interestingly, contrary to general perception, called white-ball cricket ‘a less batter-friendly’ version of the game.
“In some ways white-ball cricket suits me more because I find that batters have to come at me — and I am all for the opportunity to get them out.
"I view it as a less batter-friendly version of cricket because of the onus on them to go harder, score quicker. Conversely, it is a lot harder to go wicketless for a bowler,” wrote the 25 years old in his column.
Archer was majorly the first-change bowler for England in Test series against West Indies and Pakistan respectively with the experienced duo of James Anderson and Stuart Broad taking the new ball and leading the pace battery. Archer managed just eight wickets in four Tests at 45, but the youngster asserted that he had no trouble in playing second-fiddle to the veterans. Archer even, jokingly, described himself and Woakes as ‘first-change warriors’.
“The challenge for any fast bowler is to work as hard as you can and do what you are asked to do so that you can get into a position where you are given the choice of taking the new ball.
“But I am in a team with two world-class bowlers in Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad. I have a joke with Chris Woakes that we are the first-change warriors.
“Neither of us can bowl any earlier with those two leading our attack but we are a unit, and I am quite happy with what is being asked of me. I am in a good space right now,” asserted the 25-year-old.
In the third Test against Pakistan, James Anderson created history as he became the first fast bowler to take 600 Test wickets. Archer hailed Jimmy Anderson's remarkable feat and labelled it ‘phenomenal’.
“For Jimmy Anderson to get to 600 Test wickets is a truly great achievement. It left me wondering: ‘How do you get 600?’ It’s phenomenal, particularly as a fast bowler.”
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