Jos Buttler issues warning for Babar Azam's Pakistan ahead of T20I series opener, says 'He has a big smile on his face'

England’s T20I captain Jos Buttler on the eve of the first T20I of the four-T20I series against Pakistan confirmed that Jofra Archer will make his international comeback at Headingley, Leeds. Buttler who left Rajasthan Royals (RR) ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 playoffs said that he is just happy to see him regain fitness and bowl fast.
 

Archer made his last T20I appearance in March 2023. Buttler feels the Barbados-born pacer may take some time to get back to his old self.
 

"I think we just have to manage him through and see how it goes but he's fully fit now, which is really exciting. He has a big smile on his face. It's great to see him back fit and bowling fast - and just having him back around the group. I know how much he has missed that,” Buttler said in the pre-match press conference as quoted by Sky Sports.
 

"We've got to temper expectations, he's been out of international cricket for a long time and you can never quite replicate that, but we all know what a superstar he has been."
 

Buttler also assured that the expectations are not high from Archer and he will be given plenty of chances to get back to his best.
 

"Any player of Jofra's calibre is a huge asset to any team, so absolutely it makes us a better side and gives us a better chance of winning games. But we're not expecting too much from him too soon. It's important that he just enjoys being back and playing cricket. As England captain, and as a fan, people want to see Jofra playing cricket which is going to be great," he added.
 

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Archer’s T20I numbers

Archer has played just one T20I against Pakistan. It was his T20I debut game. In 2019, he conceded 29 runs from his quota of four overs and bagged two wickets. Since then, he has bagged 18 wickets from 15 games. His economy rate is 7.65 runs per over.
 

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