London : World Cup-winner Jofra Archer is in line to make his eagerly-awaited Test debut after being included in England’s 12-man squad for next week’s second Ashes Test against Australia at Lord’s, while Moeen Ali was left out on Friday.Fast bowler Archer could replace James Anderson after England’s all-time leading wicket-taker was ruled out with a calf injury that restricted him to sending down just four overs in a 251-run first-Test defeat at Edgbaston.Archer missed that match because of a side problem but has since proved his fitness in a second-team fixture for county side Sussex against Gloucestershire, taking 6-27 and hitting a quick-fire century.
England also have another seam-bowling option in Surrey left-armer Sam Curran.
Meanwhile, off-spinner Moeen has been dropped, with left-armer Jack Leach recalled into the squad ahead of Wednesday’s start at Lord’s.Moeen was omitted after a miserable match at Edgbaston.
The 32-year-old all-rounder only managed returns of 1-42 and 2-130 with the ball, while scoring just four runs in the match — including a first-innings duck.His second-innings bowling display was particularly concerning, with Moeen offering neither control or persistent wicket-taking on a wearing pitch favouring spinners and even bowling a couple of head-high beamers.
And both times he batted he was dismissed by Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon, who has now claimed Moeen’s wicket nine times in 11 innings.
Somerset’s Leach played his last Test against Ireland at Lord’s a fortnight ago when the nightwatchman made a career-best 92 — an innings that helped set up an England victory and won him the man-of-the-match award.
England’s middle-order trio of Joe Denly, Jos Buttler and Jonny Bairstow all had poor returns with the bat at Edgbaston, with wicketkeeper Bairstow also untidy behind the stumps.But all three have retained their places in the squad, although Denly’s position at number four had been called into question following scores of 18 and 11 in Birmingham.
warne backs archer
Australia great Shane Warne believes Jofra Archer could be the man to stop Steve Smith’s Ashes run-spree as “no one likes to face tall 90 mph (145 kph) bowlers”.Warne believes Archer’s extra pace, as well as the knowledge gained from playing alongside Smith for the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League, will stand him in good stead if he is selected.“Steve (Smith) has been the star of the show so far but now we have Jofra joining his Royals (and England) team-mates Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler,” Warne, a former Rajasthan player turned brand ambassador for the Twenty20 franchise team, said on Friday after Archer’s inclusion.
Former leg-spinner Warne, the second-most successful bowler in Test history with 708 wickets, added: “Obviously I would love to see Steve go on and score a hundred in every single innings for the rest of the Ashes but with Jofra coming in I think he’ll be set to face his biggest challenge yet and this could make the difference in the upcoming Tests.
“No one likes to face tall 90 mph bowlers.”Anderson only managed four overs before breaking down at Edgbaston and Warne, 49, said: “The loss of Anderson was such a blow for England and they will really need Jofra to step up but I think he has all the attributes to do just that.“They (Archer and Smith) will have faced each other a lot in the nets so if anyone will have a plan, it will be Jofra.”
But Archer, speaking before England’s group-stage match against Australia at Lord’s during the World Cup, said of his time with Smith at Rajasthan: “To be honest, I didn’t bowl at him much.“A lot of the guys probably don’t want to face me or (West Indies quick) Oshane Thomas in the nets.”
“But when you play with them you pick up on things you won’t normally notice when you’re just playing against them,” Archer added.
Archer only made his international debut in May but he was still England’s leading bowler during the World Cup with 20 wickets at 23.05.But his haul didn’t include the wicket of Smith even though England played Australia twice, with their pool loss to the then reigning champions followed by a semi-final win over their arch-rivals.
