IND vs ENG | Tough competition brings out the best in me, reveals Jofra Archer

After a tough Test tour against India, Jofra Archer had endured the wrath of criticism from all corners, with pundits insisting that the pacer wasn’t quite upto the mark. However, come to the T20I series, the pacer had unleashed a different version of himself, especially in the powerplay, where he accounted for India’s best T20I batsman - KL Rahul. 

From there on, there was never a section in the match, where the lanky pacer struggled, with his twin wickets in the latter part of his spell to restrict India to just 124/7, which on the day was well below the par-total. 

Archer, who was named as the Man of the Match, revealed that tough competition brings out the best in him and added that he likes to always step up in such situations. Archer also insisted that his plans in the powerplay overs - is not to look out for wickets but instead to focus on getting a lot of dot balls, with the wickets being a bonus. 

"When the competition's tough you have to step up, it brings out the best in me. [Attack leader?] Probably in IPL, but with England there's world-class bowlers, so I can't take that. Rather go for dot deliveries in the Powerplay, and wicket's are a bonus,” said Archer in the post-match presentation, reported ESPNCricinfo. 

The pacer also added that for the new batsmen, the plan was simple, to bowl the bouncer, which makes it tough for them to clear the boundaries. He also added that pressure in the English unit usually brings the best out of the entire unit, who now are on a winning spree in the shortest-format.

“Pressure usually helps the other bowlers as well. [Planning?] Usually, a new batter or with the bigger side to leg, you just bowl [the bouncer] because they'll have to play a very good shot to hit you for six or four," he concluded.