Cricket news round-up – September 14: Jofra Archer takes another six-for to blow Australia away

Jofra Archer pummelled Australia with another six-for at the Oval in London, as England ended the second day of the final Test 78 runs ahead. Elsewhere, Sarfaraz Ahmed was retained as Pakistan captain, with Babar Azam made his deputy, and Bangladesh sneak past Zimbabwe in the tri-series opener, thanks to Afif Hossain.

Archer six-for blows Australia away

After not hitting his usual highs at Old Trafford, Jofra Archer roared back in the Ashes, taking 6/62 on the second day at The Oval to bundle out Australia for 225, a deficit of 69. England ended the day at 9 for no loss 0 and with a 78-run lead.

England didn’t last long on the second morning, with Jos Buttler dismissed for 70, just six more than his overnight score. But their failure to reach 300 – England were bowled out for 294 – didn’t matter as much, given the form Archer was in.

He dismissed the Australian top three of David Warner, Marcus Harris and Marnus Labuschagne, and then came back later to lay into the middle order. Chris Woakes dismissed the dangerous Steve Smith for 80 – he was suffering from flu, he would later reveal – and England finally had a decent day out this series.

Sarfaraz Ahmed retained as Pakistan captain

Sarfaraz Ahmed held on to his position as Pakistan captain for the potential visit of Sri Lanka later this month, and Babar Azam was made his deputy.

Mickey Arthur, the former Pakistan head coach, had been keen to do away with Ahmed as captain, but the new coach, Misbah-ul-Haq, and Pakistan Cricket Committee have opted to support Ahmed in the role.

“Consistency has been my yardstick for recommending Sarfaraz as captain,” said Misbah. “Furthermore, I think I am better placed to get the best out of Sarfaraz as I know him better than most of the cricketers as he has played most of his cricket under my captaincy.”

Babar has no senior leadership experience – however, he was captain of Pakistan Under-19 during the World Cup in 2012.

Bangladesh win T20 tri-series opener

Afif Hossain’s 26-ball 52 helped Bangladesh get over the line for a three-wicket victory against Zimbabwe in the first match of the T20I tri-series, also involving Afghanistan.

In an 18-overs-a-side encounter, Zimbabwe had posted 144/5, with Ryan Burl scoring a 32-ball 57* after Hamilton Masakadza had earlier scored a 26-ball 34.

The Zimbabwe bowlers then had Bangladesh on the ropes, with Kyle Jarvis, Tendai Chatara and Neville Madziva all among the wickets. However, late on, Afif provided them with the boost that was needed, and they crossed the line with just 2 balls remaining.

Sir Strauss returns to ECB

Andrew Strauss, the former England captain, has returned in an official capacity with the ECB as chairman of the cricket committee.

Strauss’s new role will involve “monitoring and developing the delivery” of men’s and women’s professional cricket, apart from supervising other aspects of the sport, including disability cricket, national counties, clubs and universities cricket, and the talent pathway.

Strauss was ECB director of cricket before stepping down in October 2018, to be with his ailing wife. He was widely credited for overseeing the revamp of England cricket in limited-overs formats, ultimately culminating in their winning the World Cup 2019.