Jofra Archer's Test hopes rekindled by central contract extension

For Archer, who is 29, the additional year highlights what has been a promising return to regular action. Since bursting onto the international scene in the 2019 season with the World Cup and Ashes, his progress has been stunted by a series of injuries, including stress fractures of the elbow and back.

The ECB have stuck by the fast bowler, and are working meticulously with Archer. This year has been a success on that front; Archer made 20 appearances across the white-ball formats, including all eight of England’s matches at the T20 World Cup, where he was his team’s joint-leading wicket-taker with 10 dismissals at 19.00.

The board’s ambition is to have him primed for a key role in Test cricket next year, ahead of five Tests against India at home followed by the visit to Australia in the winter. His initial two-year deal was set to expire in October 2025.

Speaking in Wellington ahead of England’s second Test against New Zealand, Stokes said that Archer’s ambition to return to the red-ball set-up remains strong. He has even put himself forward for their one-off Test match against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge starting on May 22, though he appears unlikely to be available.

“The excitement is understandable around Jofra,” Stokes said. “The best thing is he is back on the field playing. I am sure he might have thought he might not have the chance to put on an England shirt again and the injuries and surgeries he has gone through could have ended other people’s careers so there is no rushing back for anything for Jofra.

“He is being handled very well by the ECB and that will certainly continue. But Jof is a man of few words, even over WhatsApp. I had one a couple of months ago saying ‘Zimbabwe?’. That shows he is very interested in playing Test cricket for England.”

Talk of Zimbabwe is far-fetched given Archer will be out at the IPL with Rajasthan Royals, who forked out INR 12.5 crore (£1.2m approx.) for his services for the tournament which is set to run until May 25. Given Archer will not have played any recent red-ball cricket before then, he is unlikely to be selected.

If the ECB were to pull Archer out ahead of time, he would incur a ban for the next two editions under the tournament’s new regulations. Those same regulations would have also banned Archer had he and his representatives not convinced the ECB to let him enter the mega auction. The governing body initially blocked his entry on the grounds they want to continue to manage his workloads before a late change.

As such, the earliest Test Archer could play would be during the India series, which begins at Lord’s on June 20. Given a lack of first-class cricket – his last match in the format came for Sussex against Kent in May 2021 – it is unlikely to be that first Test.

A round of County Championship matches starting on June 22 (Sussex travel to Durham) could allow him a tune up. He could also play the next one on June 29 (Sussex vs Warwickshire) to refamiliarise himself to the rigors of bowling multiple spells across multiple days. In the event of the latter, he could still play a part in the final three matches of that series, provided he comes out unscathed.

“When the decision gets made between him and the people who make those decisions around players, I am sure there will be conversations that he will have to get some different loading,” Stokes said.

“You can come back and play a one-day game and get two or three different spells. But in Test cricket you have to do that over a long period of time and then another day to back it up. There is no doubt he is going so well at the moment, it is a case of he will have to build the body up to handle the extra pressure of a Test match.”

Vithushan Ehantharajah is an associate editor at ESPNcricinfo