Jofra Archer may be England’s only travelling reserve to India for the World Cup but Matthew Mott is aware another misstep with the fast bowler’s fitness could have “serious ramifications”.
The recurrence of a stress fracture in Archer’s right elbow sidelined him for the summer and ultimately kept him out of England’s 15-man squad for the defence of their title, which gets under way next week.
Archer is part of the touring party as cover and a tantalising option if injury strikes, even if it is anticipated he will not be ready to make his return until the tournament is close to a conclusion.
Given the repeated setbacks he has had since a breakout 2019, when he was entrusted with bowling the super over that led to England being crowned world champions, Mott will not take any risks with the 28-year-old.
“Jofra is not fit to play until the latter stages of the tournament,” England’s white-ball head coach said. “A lot of where he’s coming from is to get some intensive work with our medical staff.
“We have been very big on not rushing him back and that message has been clear to him.
“He understands – he’s desperate to play but he’s also realistic that if this thing happens again it could have serious ramifications.
“We’ll take him over there, work with him and if something happens at the back end, he’s someone who could come in.”
England, who head to India on Wednesday night, are not flying out any more supplementary options, with Mott set to act only if and when injury does occur and bring in a like-for-like alternative.
Jason Roy, having been culled from the squad in favour of Harry Brook, has made himself available for reserve duty, while Mott has urged everyone who was part of the shadow England side that beat Ireland in a rain-affected ODI series – where Will Jacks and Ben Duckett impressed – to stay on their toes.
“We don’t need to declare where that’s at and we certainly don’t really want to speculate on it,” Mott said. “Everyone in this group here, and everyone on the periphery, should be maintaining their fitness.
“The flight to India is not that bad and the reality is (if) someone gets called up they are not going to get called straight into the XI. So they’ll have time to adjust and that’s where we arrived.
“Pulling people around India for eight weeks is not going to get the best out of them. Every player should be ready to go.”
Mott revealed Adil Rashid and Mark Wood are both “fine” following niggles, adding he has a “rough idea” of England’s preferred XI ahead of the tournament opener against New Zealand in Ahmedabad on October 5.
England selected 12 players during their 2019 triumph but Mott envisages making more use of his squad given the variety of Indian pitches and conditions, with the defending champions also facing an extensive travel schedule as their nine group-stage matches will be played in eight cities.
“We don’t have any expectations,” Mott said. “A lot of teams are going to contest and expect to do well. We are one of them but I don’t look at it as defending champions.
“We go in with the same points as everyone else. India will be favourites in the minds of many people because of home advantage, but they can go either way as well.”
England’s summer programme finishing on Tuesday brings to an end former captain Andrew Flintoff’s stint, having joined the backroom staff for their ODI series against New Zealand and Ireland.
Flintoff returned to the public eye for the first time since a serious car accident while filming for Top Gear last December and Mott would welcome back the 45-year-old with open arms going forwards.
“He’s definitely going to join us again in future, we’ve loved having him around,” Mott added.
“He’s revered, he’s got an aura about him, he’s very special and what he’s gone through recently, the humility he’s displayed and the life experiences he can share have been immense.
“Even the seasoned Test veterans, they grew up idolising him and to see him in the flesh offering so much has been very special.”
England debutant Carse hopeful of closing ground on Pakistan
Brydon Carse is confident England can catch Pakistan after making a strong start to their chase on day two of the first Test in Multan.
Test debutant Carse took 2-74 but could not hold Pakistan back as the hosts scored 556 in their first innings.
It left England, shorn of opener Ben Duckett due to an injury, facing a daunting task. But despite Ollie Pope going for a duck in the second over of their chase, the tourists were steadied by the excellent Zak Crawley and Joe Root.
Crawley got to 64 from as many deliveries, while Root moved onto 32. He is now on 12,434 Test runs, meaning he is only 39 short of surpassing Alastair Cook (12,472) as England's all-time leading run scorer in the longest format.
With the pitch having been kind to batters so far, Carse believes England are well in contention.
"We spoke last night. To have them 328 for 4, I think if you had that score back home in England you're probably behind the game a bit," he said.
"We've scored nearly 100 there in 20 overs.
"If we could come here tomorrow and bat positively and put their score under pressure, let's see where we're at at the end of the day, with two days still to go."
Reflecting on his first innings as a Test bowler, Carse said: "It's been hard work and hard toil over the last two days. But I've thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and being out there with this group of lads.
"I've had loads of messages over the last two days, from friends and family, from people that have supported me over the last 10 years since I moved to England.
"A couple of the guys and Stokesy [Ben Stokes] said to me after we fielded, 'Look Brydon, it's not going to get tougher than these first two days.' They promised!"
Carse also offered an update on Duckett, who sustained a thumb injury while fielding.
"Ben’s OK. He's just taken a knock," Carse said via BBC Sport. "He'll be assessed overnight and he'll be back batting tomorrow."
Crawley and Root leading England fight after Pakistan cement dominance
Zak Crawley and Joe Root's assured start with the bat gave England hope on day two of their first Test against Pakistan, after the hosts had again impressed with the bat.
Just like on day one, the tourists struggled in the field as Pakistan racked up an impressive total of 556, before overcoming setbacks to steady the ship late in the day.
England were unable to build on their strong finish to day one, which saw them take three late wickets to halt Pakistan at 328-4, but Brydon Carse (2-74) got a wicket on his debut to end Naseem Shah's stand of 33.
Saud Shakeel's 82 put the hosts further out of reach, but it was Salman Ali Agha's unbeaten 104 off 119 balls that kept the momentum firmly with Pakistan, though it almost turned out differently.
Chris Woakes made a spectacular boundary catch with Salman on 15, but it was ruled not out as Woakes was judged to have stepped beyond the rope, denying England a chance to drop the hosts to 420-7.
Though England at one point took four wickets for 76 runs, it did little to end the onslaught, and they finished Pakistan's innings on a low note as opener Ben Duckett hurt his thumb taking the catch on the final wicket.
Ollie Pope then opened in his place, but the stand-in captain was taken for a duck on just his second ball.
However, Crawley (64 not out) and Root (32 not out) managed to calm any nerves as they reached stumps at 96-1, though they still trail by 460 runs.
Data Debrief: Pakistan race out of the blocks again
After making a flying start on day one, Pakistan caught England out with a similar tactic on Tuesday, adding 64 to the fifth wicket before Naseem was made to walk.
Jack Leach (3-160) was the pick of England's bowlers as they struggled in the heat, but for the most part, the tourists had no answers as Salman became the third centurion in the Test so far.
They will be hoping Crawley and Root can continue defying Pakistan with their stand on day three, with the latter now just 39 runs away from overtaking Alistair Cook as England's all-time leading run-scorer.
ICC lauds Match Referee Richie Richardson on 50th Test match milestone
Former West Indies stalwart Richie Richardson was moved by the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) recognition as he celebrated a milestone of officiating in 50 Men’s Test matches as a Match Referee.
Richardson, a member of the Emirates ICC Panel of Elite Match Referees, reached the landmark when he took the field in the first Test between Pakistan and England in Multan on Monday.
The 62-year-old former West Indies captain has also officiated in 99 Men’s ODIs, 99 Men’s T20Is, eight Women’s ODIs and 15 Women’s T20Is since making his international debut in February 2016.
Sean Easey, ICC’s senior manager for umpires and referees, lauded Richardson on the milestone.
“Congratulations are offered for reaching this significant milestone. Building on his extensive experience from being a player and team manager, Richie has worked hard to establish himself as a Match Referee. That hard work is clearly paying off,” Easey said.
“He conducts himself with composure, integrity, and respect, and in return he is highly respected by the game’s participants. On behalf of the ICC, I wish Richie best wishes for his 50th Test match as a referee,” he added.
Richardson in return expressed gratitude to those who supported him along the way.
“It is an honour to be officiating in my 50th Men’s Test match. I have enjoyed doing this job in different parts of the world and in all three formats of the game.
“I thank the International Cricket Council, Cricket West Indies, and all my colleagues for their support over the years. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank my family and friends whose encouragement has been invaluable,” Richardson stated.
During his playing time, Richardson scored 5,944 runs in 86 Test matches and 6,248 runs in 224 One Day Internationals during an impressive international career from 1983 to 1996. He was inducted into the Emirates ICC Panel of Elite Match Referees in 2016.
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