Steve Harmison says England star is 'most exciting talent' since Kevin Pietersen

Steve Harmison insists a fully-fit Jofra Archer would be a huge boost for England ahead of the Ashes and World Cup and has hailed the pace bowler as the ‘most exciting talent’ since Kevin Pietersen.

Archer burst onto the international scene in 2019, helping England win the World Cup and starring in the home Ashes series.

His career since then has been plagued by injury problems and Archer played his first competitive match in almost two years at South Africa’s new T20 league earlier this month.

Archer has impressed in the SA20, taking eight wickets in five matches at an economy rate of 7.57.

The 27-year-old will hope to continue his comeback journey in England’s three-match ODI series against South Africa, which starts on Friday, before featuring in the Ashes and the World Cup later in the year.

‘It’s great to see Jofra back playing, for him more than anything else,’ Harmison told OnlineCricketBetting.

‘I’m not bothered about England at this moment in time, he can play for MI Cape Town and then Mumbai Indians. I just want to see the boy back playing cricket.

‘He is one of the most exciting talents I’ve seen in cricket for a long, long time. From an England point of view, he’s probably the most exciting talent since Kevin Pietersen.

‘I was in the group when that big lad from South Africa came over with his daft haircut and you’re thinking “who on earth is this?”

‘And then it was probably the most exciting few years that English cricket had, that 2005 period, where KP took the world by surprise. I think when Jofra came onto the scene, it’s the most excited I’ve been since KP.’

England will hope Archer can play a role in this summer’s Ashes series, although Jos Buttler has warned fans not to ‘expect too much, too soon’ from the fast bowler.

Harmison doubts Archer will be in a position to play in all five Ashes Tests but says his availability would be a significant boost as Ben Stokes’ side look to reclaim the urn.

‘If you want to talk about him playing for England, it’s like priming a racehorse before a big race,’ added Harmison, who took 226 Test wickets in 63 matches.

‘You’ve got the Ashes in June, so can they get him in peak condition to hit Australia three or four times throughout that series?

‘I don’t think he can play in all five Tests, I don’t think it’s possible for him or Mark Wood to play in all five but it’s so good to see him back playing.

‘If he get through most of his overs in two of the three ODIs that are coming up in South Africa then it will be a big step towards a positive recovery for Jofra.’

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