In his comeback Test, Jofra Archer sent down a searing spell of bowling against India at Lord's.
On day three of the third Test, Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul took India closer to England's first-innings score of 387, and were looking good to kick on after lunch. But on the last ball before the break, Pant was run out attempting a quick single, as England skipper Ben Stokes pulled off an athletic collect-and-throw at the non-striker's end.
Rahul departed in the second over of the second session, one ball after scoring his second Test hundred at Lord's – bringing Nitish Kumar Reddy to the crease alongside Ravindra Jadeja.
3rd Test, England vs India
vs
- Ball by ball Over
Jofra Archer clocks over 90 mph with each ball of his 18th over
The two wickets in quick succession gave England a real boost on the field, particularly with Jofra Archer just one over into a post-lunch spell, and two new batters having to face him.
Archer had marked his comeback Test, his first since 2021, with the wicket of Yashasvi Jaiswal in the second over of India's innings. In his fourth over after lunch, and 18th of the innings, he cranked up his speeds, providing a reminder of what England had missed during his time out of the side.
The first two balls of the over were measured at 93 mph, homing in at the body of the left-handed Jadeja who got a single off the second one. The next four came at Reddy at speeds of 92, 91, 92 and 92 mph, two of them bouncers which the 22-year-old swayed out of the way of, receiving a few words from the bowler.
According to cricket data company CricViz, that over was Archer's fastest in Test cricket since his memorable debut at the same venue, when he peppered Australia batter Steve Smith. His previous over saw three deliveries clock over 90 mph, and one in the over before that was sent down at 94 mph. All told, Archer's four-over post-lunch burst was also the fastest spell of his 14-Test career thus far.
Follow Wisden for all England vs India updates, including live scores, latest news, team lineups, schedule and more. The live streaming details for the ENG vs IND series in India, UK, USA and rest of the world can be found here. For Wisden quizzes, head here.
