Jofra Archer roared back into Test cricket in story-book fashion, charging in from the Pavilion End at the Home of Cricket and shattering India’s top order with raw pace that rattled the sold-out crowd.
Absent from the longest format for years, the 30-year-old needed just three deliveries to announce his comeback, spearing a rocket that forced Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal into a nervous prod straight to Harry Brook at second slip.
Lord’s, usually polite, erupted like a football terrace as England’s X-factor quick wheeled away in celebration.
Jofra Archer’s first-over magic
Archer’s return comes at a tantalising moment for English cricket. The nation has searched for a true shock bowler since his elbow troubles first surfaced.
Facing him today was an Indian line-up led by Jasprit Bumrah, renowned for precision and late movement but lacking the sheer velocity of bowling’s old intimidators.
On a lighter note, many in the stands joked that India’s pacers, for all their skill, seldom provoke the heart-in-mouth reactions once inspired by Shoaib Akhtar’s blistering spells.
The stage could hardly have been grander. A cloud-flecked sky, the buzz of 31,000 fans crammed onto every bench, and the promise of a classic England-India duel.
Just before Archer’s first ball, the ground fell silent. A second later, the slips were cheering, Stokes thumped Archer’s helmet, and everyone knew they were watching something big.
Archer then hurled two more balls at about 93 mph, making the crowd gasp and giving Karun Nair hardly any time to react.
India hit back through Bumrah, whose five-wicket haul earlier kept England to 387, but the narrative of the day belonged to Archer.
His rhythm coupled with smooth run-up, explosive gather, whiplash release; secured a second spell clocking more north of 150-kph thunderbolts, the fastest of the series so far.
By stumps, India sat 145-3 with KL Rahul steady, yet the psychological battle felt already tilted: England’s spearhead had re-established that crucial element of fear.
For Archer, this is more than a wicket in the scorebook; it is vindication after years of rehab treadmills and doubts about whether his body would withstand Test rigors again.
Should he remain fit, this Lord’s encore might prove the launch-pad for a summer defined by pace: exactly the spectacle the jam-packed stands demanded, and a reminder that genuine speed, when married to skill, still sets pulses racing like nothing else in cricket.
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