"Exciting to see him in an England tracksuit" - Jos Buttler optimistic of seeing Jofra Archer on the field soon
England white-ball captain Jos Buttler feels Jofra Archer still has a lot to offer to the national team despite being out of action for a long time now.
The keeper-batter remains hopeful of seeing the right-arm speedster in the field soon and was delighted to see him bowling in the nets with the team.
Archer, not included in England's 15-man provisional 2023 World Cup squad, is unlikely to make it to the final one due to his stress fracture in the right elbow.
The Barbadian returned to top-level cricket during SA20 for Mumbai Indians Cape Town earlier this year, but the elbow injury resurfaced, putting him out of the entire England summer, including the Ashes series.
Referring to the 28-year-old as a superstar, Buttler stated that Archer has plenty of cricket ahead of him and is keen to see how he progresses.
As quoted by ESPN Cricinfo, the keeper-batter said:
"There's a huge duty of care to [Archer]. He's been out of the game for a while, and he's still a young man who's got a lot of cricket ahead of him. It's obviously exciting to see him in an England tracksuit and bowling and, even when he looks like he's going through the motions, he creates a lot of speed."
He added:
"So yeah, he's a superstar. We'll find out again more over time as to how he's always travelling, but we're excited that he'll be back on the park soon."
Archer was instrumental in England's 2019 World Cup victory as he was their highest wicket-taker in the tournament, taking 20 scalps in 11 matches at 23.05.
He also bowled the Super Over in the final against New Zealand at Lord's as the hosts prevailed by the barest of margins.
"You know what you're getting when you bring Ben Stokes back into the squad" - Jos Buttler
Reflecting on Ben Stokes' phenomenal comeback to ODI cricket, Buttler reckons he couldn't be happier about the all-rounder's availability for the World Cup, elaborating:
"It was an amazing innings the other day. You know what you're getting when you bring Ben Stokes back into the squad. I'm delighted that he's available for the World Cup. We obviously know what he can do on the pitch, but everything he brings to the team off it is great as well."
He added:
"I think also that it was great for his confidence, coming back after a year or so. Even a player, as great as he is, you probably want to just get your feet under the table again and have a good innings."
The 3rd ODI against New Zealand at the Oval saw Stokes make England's highest individual in score in ODI cricket of 182.