Jofra Archer admits bouncer to Steve Smith in Lord's 2019 Test reminded him of Phil Hughes

England pacer Jofra Archer recently admitted to remembering Phil Hughes after his 92 mph bouncer struck Steve Smith at Lord’s during the 2019 Ashes series. The pacer said that he kept his composure at the time, even though he was worried for the Australian batsman. The second Ashes Test match at Lord’s was also Jofra Archer’s maiden outing in the format and he finished with figures of 2-59 and 3-32 across the two Australian innings.

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Phil Hughes death: Jofra Archer admits to remembering the 2014 tragedy

While speaking with talkSPORT, Jofra Archer said after when Steve Smith went down to his bouncer, the first thing that came to his mind was the tragic Phil Hughes death during the 2014 Australian domestic season. Incidentally, Steve Smith was hit around the same vicinity as Phil Hughes was and Archer admitted to the same as a sign of trouble for any batsman. While Steve Smith suffered a concussion and was dropped for the third Test, the right-arm fast bowler said that he was glad to see the Australian come out of his injury to bat in the remaining two matches.

Phil Hughes death: Jofra Archer’s bouncer to Steve Smith, watch video (from 1:54 to 2:11)

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Phil Hughes death

On November 25, 2014, Australian batsman Phil Hughes was hit on the helmet by a rising bouncer from fast bowler Sean Abbott during a Sheffield Shield match at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). He died two days later in a Sydney hospital.

IPL: Jofra Archer and Steve Smith in Rajasthan Royals

Both Jofra Archer and Steve Smith represent Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Even during the IPL 2020 trading and transfer window, the two cricketers were retained by the franchise for the now-postponed IPL 2020 season. While Steve Smith was retained for ₹12 crore (US$1.6 million), the English pacer was retained for ₹7.2 crore (US$955,895) by the franchise.

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