Jofra Archer returns to England XI for Lord's Test; had tense battles vs India and personal edge over Shubman Gill

Jofra Archer makes a return to England Test XI after over four years for the third match of the series at Lord's, starting Thursday.

Jofra Archer is confirmed to make a return to Test cricket as England face India in the third Test at Lord’s on Thursday. The right-arm pacer, considered among the fiercest in world cricket, has been named in the playing XI, his first red-ball appearance in over four years.

England's Jofra Archer during practice (Action Images via Reuters)

Archer, who replaces Josh Tongue in the XI, has been battling recurring injuries since his last Test outing in 2021, which, interestingly, also came against India. While he has made limited appearances in white-ball cricket since then, concerns around his long-format fitness kept him out of the Test setup until now.

His return marks his 14th Test appearance and a third straight against India. Archer’s last red-ball showing was during England’s tour of India in early 2021. In the opening Test of that series, he made an immediate impact by removing both Indian openers, Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill, and finished with figures of 2/75 in the first innings. England rode that early breakthrough to a comprehensive 227-run win, only to lose the series 3-1.

Archer also featured in the third Test of the same tour, though on a rank turner in Ahmedabad, his role was limited. He bowled just five overs but still made his presence felt by dismissing Gill once again.

The Lord’s Test presents a crucial opportunity not only for England to take the lead in a tightly-contested series but also for Archer to reassert himself as a force in Test cricket. With India’s top-order firing and the series locked at 1-1, England will hope that Archer’s pace, accuracy, and past success against Indian batters, particularly Shubman Gill, can provide the edge they need at the ‘Home of Cricket’.

Archer the only change

Despite a 336-run hammering in the second Test, England have made no other change to their XI. Questions had been asked over Zak Crawley's performance in the second Test, with Chris Woakes also under the scanner after underwhelming outings across both matches of the series. England, however, have decided to put their faith in the experienced duo as they chase a series lead at Lord's.

England XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (C), Jamie Smith (WK), Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer, Shoaib Bashir