England defeated Pakistan in the second Twenty20 international match, and the archer shone.

 England defeated Pakistan in the second Twenty20 international match, and the archer shone.

On his much anticipated comeback to international cricket, England pacer Jofra Archer captured two wickets in the second Twenty20 International of the four-match series on Saturday at Edgbaston against Pakistan. IMAGE: AFP

In his eagerly anticipated comeback to international cricket, Jofra Archer took two wickets as England defeated Pakistan by 23 runs at Edgbaston to take a 1-0 lead in the four-match Twenty20 series.

 Jos Buttler, the captain of England, was named man-of-the-match after hitting 84 off 51 balls to give the home team a target of 184.

But Archer's comeback was what grabbed attention, as he argued that he should be picked for the T20 World Cup in the United States and the West Indies next month.

The fast bowler, who helped England win the 50-over World Cup in 2019, has suffered from elbow issues ever since.
In his first outing for his country since 2020, Archer made his maiden international debut in 14 months. He recovered from a costly opening over that saw 15 runs go for 28.

Buttler remarked, "I thought Jofra Archer was brilliant." "We should lower our expectations because he won't return to form right immediately, but you could sense his emotion when he took wickets for England again.

"I'm really pleased with the whole bowling group."
Moeen Ali removed Muhammad Rizwan in the opening over, while Reece Topley claimed three wickets for 41.
With three sixes and eight fours, Buttler was the standout player for England when batting.
Will Jacks' 37 and Jonny Bairstow's 21 provided him with plenty of backing, but England were unable to build on the foundation their captain laid.
Pakistan fought back, capturing five wickets for just 25 runs, with Shaheen Shah Afridi being the best bowler with a 3-36 total.

Pakistan captain Babar Azam remarked, "We got them to a par score, our bowlers bowled very well and we had our moments when we were batting."

The Pakistani chase gained some momentum after Fakhar Zaman's 45 from 21 balls, but with four balls remaining, the quickness of Chris Jordan, Archer, and Topley tore through the foreigners' resistance.

"It was not a good finish. Myself and Fakhar had a tiny partnership, but we didn't receive the other 40 or 50 partnerships that England did," Azam continued.
Following the first match's Wednesday cancellation, England leads the four-match series 1-0.