Already down 1-0 in five-match Test series against England, India will have a new threat to deal with in the seocnd Test. England on Thursday added fast bowler Jofra Archer to their squad for the second Test against India, starting in Birmingham from July 2. Archer has struggled with elbow-related injury to his bowling arm over the last several years. He last played in a Test more than four years ago against India in Ahmedabad. “The 30-year-old right-arm quick returns to the England Test set-up for the first time since February 2021 and will be looking to add to his 13 Test caps at Edgbaston next week,” the ECB said in a statement.

The 30-year-old right-arm quick returning to the England Test since February 2021 will be looking to add to his 13 Test caps at Edgbaston next week, as per an England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) release. Archer has 42 wickets at an average of 31.04, with the best figures of 6/45.

England lead five-match series 1-0 after defeating India in the opening Test by five wickets at Leeds.

Archer played his first red-ball contest in more than four years earlier this week when he turned out for Sussex in their four-day match against Durham at Chester-Le-Street and showed glimpses of his best as he scored 31 with the bat and collected figures of 1/32 from 18 overs as the teams played out a draw, as per ICC.

After bowling in whites for the first time in 1,501 days, he said: “Yeah. I guess so. I just want to get through the game. I’m glad I’ve finished a day of four-day cricket.”

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

Coming to the first Test match, India was put to bat first by England. Centuries from Yashasvi Jaiswal (101), skipper Shubman Gill (147) and Rishabh Pant (134) pushed India to 471, with Ben Stokes being the leading bowler with figures of 4/66.

England also delivered a fine reply with the bat, as a century from Ollie Pope (106) and fifties from Harry Brook (99) and Ben Duckett (62) pushed them to 465, giving India a slender six-run lead. Jasprit Bumrah was the pick of the bowlers, taking five wickets.