Southampton [UK], September 8 : England head coach Brendon McCullum expects express pacer Jofra Archer to be a "huge player" for the Three Lions during the upcoming winter of cricket and described the Ashes tour of Australia in November as the "biggest series of our lives".
Archer had a scorching three-match ODI series against Proteas, ending with eight wickets, the joint-highest, getting two back-to-back four-wicket hauls, with the second one decimating Proteas during a 415-run chase at Southampton and sending them packing for just 72 runs on Sunday.
Archer made his Test comeback in July against India, securing nine wickets in two appearances on his return to white clothing after four years of staying away from it due to injuries and workload management.
McCullum said that Archer's injury-free summer, which also saw him feature in The Hundred tournament, has proven England's cautious approach with him right.
"That was an unbelievable spell," McCullum said as quoted by ESPNCricinfo after the match.
"It was box-office bowling...It is not just his pace, but his skill, his ability to shift it both ways and to test batters with the steep bounce he gets. He is a proper cricketer, hence why we have taken our time with him to make sure that we give him every chance to be in the biggest series of all of our lives."
"It is always a delicate balance. Sometimes you need to keep bowling, and you need to keep ticking over. I think a lot of injuries happen when you almost down the tools completely, not that I really understand how that works. However, we must ensure that we adhere to the plan."
"We have had a good plan with Jof over the last little while and he is rewarded us for the type of planning that we have had with performances like tonight. He is going to be a huge player when we get to Australia, as a number of others are. But I don't think we will wrap him up [in cotton wool] per se. We will just keep working with him on how he's going and work out what is best for him," he concluded.
The first Test of the Ashes will be played at Perth in late November, with England searching for their first win in Australia since the 2011 series.
Also, all-rounder Jacob Bethell, who secured his first-ever hundred in all of professional cricket, a scorching 110 in 82 balls at Southampton, could put pressure on number three Ollie Pope, who did not have a very bright series against India, scoring 306 runs in nine innings with a century and a fifty at an average of 34.00.
Bethell, who had one poor game down the order against India, impressed at number three against New Zealand, scoring 260 runs in six innings, with three fifties, striking at 75.14 and averaging 52.
McCullum claimed that he does not yet have a team in his head for the Perth clash.
"We will work that out when we get to Australia. We have got a few other fish to fry before we get there. We have said about Jacob since we introduced him that he has got a huge future in front of him. He has very quickly taken to international cricket, and things have come really quickly for him as well," he said.
"He is going to have some life: 21 years of age, and being able to play like he does... I want to celebrate the fact that his first-ever professional hundred has been scored in the England jumper at the age of 21. I think [David] Gower's the only other one [to score an ODI hundred for England at 21], and he was a pretty good player. We will see where Jacob ends up," he added.
McCullum also said that pacer Mark Wood and all-rounder Ben Stokes, who are struggling with fitness, are "progressing well" ahead of the Ashes and England will name the squad at September end. While Wood did not feature against India, Stokes did play four matches and delivered quality all-round performances, including 304 runs with a century and 17 wickets with a five-wicket haul to his name.
Wood will play for Durham in County Championship later this month, while Stokes is unlikely to play any more matches ahead of the Perth Test.
"Stokesy will be training as he always does, and making sure he gets as fit as what he possibly can... The last series we saw from Stokesy is probably the best series he has had as captain, so that is a good sign. We know that for us to be competitive down in Australia, a fit, firing and motivated Ben Stokes is going to give us every chance," he concluded.