Stuart Broad has urged England fans to manage their expectations of Jofra Archer after his starring role in a summer that brought World Cup success and a 2-2 series draw with Australia.
Archer took 47 wickets in his first season of international cricket, including 22 at just 20 apiece in the Ashes, leaving his new-ball partner Broad to lavish praise on his ‘incredible attributes’.
But Broad added: ‘His next challenge is that it won’t always be as easy as this. He won’t always take wickets as regularly.
‘He had one average day at Old Trafford and then all of a sudden he started getting some criticism, so it is important we don’t expect him to be 10 out of 10 every day, because that is physically impossible as a fast bowler.’
Broad himself managed 23 wickets against Australia, including opener David Warner seven times — equalling the world record for one bowler against one batsman in a Test series.
‘I’ve gone from being talked about as a diminishing cricketer being eased out to a reinvented cricketer with more to offer,’ he said. ‘I never dreamt I would have the success against Warner that I had.’