Need to be patient with Jofra Archer, he's still very young: Joe Root
Manchester [UK], Aug 9 (ANI): After winning the first Test against Pakistan by three wickets, England skipper Joe Root said that the side will be patient with Jofra Archer as the pacer is still very young.
In the first Test against Pakistan, Archer claimed four wickets, including a three-wicket haul in the first innings, but the pacer was criticised for not bowling with full steam.
"We just need to be very understanding that he's still very young in his Test career, and that there will be mistakes and lessons to be learnt. But as long as he's willing to learn from them and to keep looking to improve and get better, we will continue to see very special things from him," ESPNCricinfo quoted Archer as saying.
"Just remember that, under very high pressure at the start of his career, he's performed extremely well. He has done very special things against Australia in an Ashes series, right off the back of a World Cup under a heavy workload," he added.
Archer was seen bowling consistently in the mid-80s and it is very less as compared to the pace he registered in his debut Test series (Ashes) in 2019.
The pacer has been the first choice bowler for the side in the Tests against West Indies and Pakistan. He was just dropped for the second Test against Windies as he broke the team's bio-secure bubble and as a result, was punished.
"He's capable of winning games, there's no doubt about that. He might have a quiet game every now and again, and he might not always get it right. But there will be times as well when it turns up and wins you a game in a session, and turns a game on its head," Root said.
"We all get very excited when [Archer]'s bowling up around 90 miles an hour, and certainly that will cause batters a lot of trouble. But there is more to it than that. And that we've got to understand that he has a bigger package to offer. Jofra is a huge talent, we all know that, and he's not always going to get it right. He's very young still and he's still learning and there is definitely a lot of many winning performances in him," he added.
England chased down a target of 277 on the fourth day of the first Test to go 1-0 ahead in the three-match series.
The hosts were 117/5 at one stage, but it was then that Jos Buttler and Chris Woakes put up a 139-run stand to revive England's hopes.
In the end, England won the match by three wickets as Woakes played an unbeaten knock of 84 runs.
The second Test between England and Pakistan will be played at the Ageas Bowl, Southampton from August 13-17. (ANI)
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