England have a selection dilemma over the make-up of their bowling attack for the fourth Test against South Africa at The Wanderers, with Jofra Archer coming back in contention after proving himself fit with a rapid spell of bowling in the nets.
Archer was left out for the third Test at Port Elizabeth in place of Mark Wood, with the former sustaining an elbow injury and the latter impressing with a quick burst in practice, form which he carried into the Port Elizabeth Test, at one point topping 94mph. England have rarely possessed two bowlers capable of reaching such speeds, and the prospect of playing both is tantalising.
Who they would leave out is another question. Stuart Broad and Sam Curran are England’s two leading wicket-takers this winter, with the former England’s second-leading Test wicket-taker of all time, and the latter adding depth to their batting, having contributed a useful 44 at Port Elizabeth, his highest Test score since his breakout 2018.
They want to win the series, don’t they? And they want to win it convincingly. The other thing you have got to keep in mind, and this is really dull, is World Test Championship points because you know there are 30 points up for grabs for each win in this series. They are trying to keep themselves in the hunt. I know Australia and India have really pulled away but England are quite clear that they want to be in that final.
