‘He’s looking ready to go’ – Brendon McCullum provides massive update on Jofra Archer ahead of Lord’s Test

Brendon McCullum provides massive update on Jofra Archer ahead of Lord’s Test (Source: Getty Images)

England’s head coach Brendon McCullum shared that Jofra Archer would be in contention for the third Test of the ongoing five-match series between England and India. For the unversed, England had gone into the recently-concluded second game with an unchanged XI despite Archer being a part of the squad.

Ahead of the third Test, Gus Atkinson in addition to Archer will also be a part of the riveting red-ball encounter, set to be played at the Lord’s cricket ground in London. McCullum hinted at a possible rotation of the fast-bowling unit after the workload they had to endure while playing the first two matches of the series.

“He’ll certainly be available for selection. Our seamers have gone two Tests on the spin, and we’ve got a short turnaround before we head down to HQ (Lord’s). We’ll let the dust settle on this one, but Jofra is looking fit, he’s looking strong, he’s looking ready to go, and he’ll come into calculations. It’s hugely exciting,” McCullum was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

The former New Zealand international was hopeful of premier speedster’s return and that he would only build on his numbers in a format which he last played in February 2021.

“He’s loving being around the group, and it’s great to have him. He’s obviously been through his injuries and his time out of Test cricket. But we all know what he’s capable of achieving in Test cricket, and we hope that when the opportunity does arrive for him, he’s able to recapture and also improve on what he’s been able to do already in that form of the game,” he added.

Atkinson near-confirmed to spearhead at Lord’s

McCullum alluded to Atkinson, who last played in the one-off Test against Zimbabwe, being part of the bowling attack for the upcoming match.

“We need to have a good look at Gus. We’ll just see how the dust settles on this [Test]. The guys had quite a heavy workload. When you chase a bit of leather, you obviously go pretty deep into your spells as well. So, we’ll see how they are, and then we’ll make the decision when we get down the road,” he mentioned further.

Englandhad had a great start to the series after winning the series opener by five wickets. However, they suffered a huge setback after going down in the subsequent contest by 336 runs. The Ben Stokes-led unit would be aiming on putting in a much better performance at the Home of Cricket.

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