WHY JOFRA IS IN NO RUSH TO MAKE HIS TON
Quality rather than speed is target for England ace
JOFRA ARCHER has no interest in breaking the magic 100mph barrier in the ‘other’ sporting reunion between England and New Zealand.
Never mind Saturday’s World Cup semi-final in Yokohama, when a rugby history will be written in All Black or allwhite. Next week, England’s cricketers resume acquaintances with New Zealand for the first time since the dramatic World Cup final three months ago – when Archer was the hero.
Only Monty Panesar, galloping halfway around Nagpur after dismissing Sachin Tendulkar for his maiden Test wicket, or Imran Tahir – who celebrates every wicket with runaway joy – can rival Archer’s 60-metre dash towards the Lord’s Tavern after the heartstopping finish on July 14.
With his fastest delivery clocked at 96.1mph, all eyes will be on the speed gun when Archer is unleashed on the Black Caps for the Tests that follow a five-match T20 series.
But he is not obsessed with overtaking Steve Harmison (96.8mph) as the fastest recorded Englishman – because he believes preoccupation with speed compromises other aspects of the delivery’s quality.
Archer said: “I don’t know if New Zealand will be pleased to see me again – you will have to ask them – but I will be pleased to see them.
“You think about the World Cup final and the many ways that game could have ended. Everyone thought we had run out of all the possibilities, but then we came up with some more. And then you think about how different the summer would have looked if it had gone the other way and New Zealand had won.
“After the final, my mind was more exhausted than my body. We probably won that game through our mental strength as much as anything, and I was glad to get away and see my family back in Barbados when it was over. This winter is a new challenge, a new series.
“I try not to look too far ahead because cricket has a way of bringing you down to earth if you don’t focus on what’s in front of you.”
Speaking in Horsham, as ambassador for England’s soft drinks partner Rubicon, Archer was happy to be reminded of his 95mph bullets, one of which ‘sconned’ Ashes nemesis Steve Smith at Lord’s.
But following Pakistan’s Shoaib Akhtar and Aussie pair Brett Lee and Shaun Tait into the 100mph club is not on his radar.
Archer, who took a superb 22 wickets in four Tests at 20.27 apiece in the drawn Ashes series this summer, said: “I think 95mph is more than enough pace.
“If 95mph is not enough to get the batsman out, it means something is not quite right with the delivery – and it’s not the speed.
“If 95mph doesn’t work, then 100mph is not going to work either. As a bowler, you need to concentrate on getting the line and length right, or following the strategy. I have a good understanding with captain Joe Root. He knows what I am capable of doing. Apart from Stuart Broad, I bowled the most overs in the Ashes. It’s good that he trusts me.”
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If 95mph doesn’t work, then 100mph is not going to work either