Jofra Archer picked in England squad for second Test versus India

England have reinforced their pace stocks by adding Jofra Archer to their Test squad for the second of the five-match series against India. The 30-year-old who was had a debilitating tryst with injuries will return to the red-ball setup for the first time since February 2021 and may well get an opportunity to add to his 13 caps in the format when the fixture at Edgbaston gets underway on July 2.

The pacer made a return to red-ball cricket in the last round of County Championship for Sussex against Durham. His previous Test appearance for England was against India as well in 2021, post which he was bogged down by a spate of injuries, including a back stress fracture, that kept him on the sidelines intermittently until 2024 before he resumed his white-ball career in May 2024.

The remainder of the England squad is the same as the one that was named ahead of the series opener in Leeds, which the hosts won by five wickets by gunning down 371, their second-highest successful chase in Tests.

The last three Tests of the newfangled Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 will be played at the Lord’s (July 10-14), Old Trafford in Manchester (July 23-27) and The Oval (July 31- August 4).

England squad for 2nd Test: Ben Stokes (C), Jofra Archer, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Sam Cook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes.