Jofra time
Jofra Archer could be excused for feeling rather nervous this morning as he is paraded as England’s saviour ahead of the second Ashes Test against Australia.
The 24-year-old fast bowler will make his five-day debut at Lord’s today and rather a lot is expected of him. Indeed, the Daily Telegraph has already dubbed him a titan
“There has not been this much anticipation and expectation for a Test debut since Kevin Pietersen was thrown into the Ashes in 2005. And we all know how that turned out,” says the Daily Mail. “It is no exaggeration to say Jofra Archer could transform not only this Ashes series but an England Test side still struggling to locate its true identity.”
His task is a simple one – dismiss Steve Smith. “Genuinely quick bowlers, are few and far between and precious,” says Michael Atherton in The Times. “Archer is in that bracket and will ask questions… that England have not been able to in the past seven Tests, when Smith has plundered runs for fun and Australia have won six of those matches.”
City avoid ban
In the world of football, Manchester City have avoided a transfer ban after admitting breaking the rules on registering young players that led to Chelsea receiving a two-window ban.
“The club have instead been given a £315,000 fine and seem to have benefited from Fifa’s new disciplinary code, which came into force last month and offers the possibility of significantly reduced sanctions for accepting wrongdoing,” says The Times.
Meanwhile, the Daily Mirror focuses on Liverpool’s Super Cup showdown with Chelsea tonight, and The Sun reports that Manchester United’s forgotten man Alexis Sanchez may be banished to the reserves if the club can’t sell him before the European transfer window closes on September 2.
