"India won’t out-spin us" - Jofra Archer believes England can hurt the hosts on turning tracks
Jofra Archer has insisted that the upcoming India-England Test series won't be one-sided if the hosts prepare turning pitches. The pacer explained that the English spinners can exploit such conditions and won't be out-spinned by Virat Kohli's team.
England have already arrived in Chennai for the first Test, which is set to begin from 5th February. Both teams are coming into the series on the back of confidence-boosting triumphs. While India beat Australia 2-1 Down Under, England won 2-0 in Sri Lanka.
Jofra Archer, who has previously played in India, owing to his stint with IPL outfit Rajasthan Royals, wants the pitches to be lively and offer some assistance to the bowlers.
Writing in his column for the Daily Mail, Archer stated:
"I’ve played lots of Indian Premier League here but nothing in terms of first-class cricket, so the challenges of bowling with a red ball will become clearer. In the IPL the batters have to come at you, whereas in Test cricket they can sit on you for a full session if they want and if the pitch is dead there is nothing you can do about it. So let’s hope we get some good wickets with a little bit of pace for the bowlers. Or even some turn, because if they spin, the matches will not be one-sided. We have good spinners in our squad and India won’t out-spin us," said Archer.
It will be a massive task for Jofra Archer and co. to topple India in their backyard. It is the seamer's first Test tour of India, and it remains to be seen how he performs.
Jofra Archer impressed with India's showing in Australia
Jofra Archer revealed that he followed the recently-concluded India-Australia Test series. The fast-bowler was impressed with Team India's ability to find new heroes over the course of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
"Their 2-1 win showed that you cannot underestimate any of the leading teams in Test cricket, even when some of their best players are missing. In fact, the one thing that impressed me most about India was that everyone in their team chipped in. If it wasn’t the guy who performed well in the previous innings, it was someone else," added Archer.
The upcoming four-match series will be part of the ICC World Test Championship. While India are leading the table after their series win in Australia, England are fourth.