"In successful teams people stick together and support each other. I think that is what Archer needs to concentrate his mind on and forget about everything else"
Friday 24 July 2020 11:28, UK
England paceman Jofra Archer should take a step back from social media and focus on becoming a great fast bowler, says Michael Holding.
Archer has been included in a 14-man squad for the Ruth Strauss Foundation Test against West Indies, which begins on Friday, despite admitting earlier this week that he has been struggling for motivation after missing England's victory in the second Test having broken bio-security rules.
Since then Archer has bowled quickly in two net sessions and Sky Sports pundit Holding says he fully expects him to be in the right frame of mind for the #raisethebat series decider at Emirates Old Trafford.
"To be honest, I don't think it should be that difficult," said former fast bowler Holding. "The environment in which he is, is he's in a team that has just won the last Test match.
"He's amongst friends in the England team; he has Ben Stokes, who he is very close to, who is a personable person and also a positive person.
"So he should just make sure that he gets involved with the team, forgets about all the outside noise and just do what he can do. He is potentially a great bowler so he should just concentrate on that."
Holding and fellow Sky Sports Cricket pundit Ebony Rainford-Brent spoke passionately ahead of the first Test of the series about the discrimination they have experienced in their lives, calling for an end to institutionalised racism.
The 66-year-old, who took 249 Test wickets for West Indies, says that one way of defusing the impact of online abuse is simply to ignore it.
"It's not easy," he admitted. "When people are starting to abuse you because of your ethnicity, the colour of your skin, your religion or anything that is physical about you - even if people try to bully you because you are overweight, it's not easy to get over.
"But it's all a matter of concentrating on what your job is. Social media is difficult to deal with. That's why I've never had any sort of account.
"If you are going to be dealing with things like that you've got to be mentally strong. Archer is a very good bowler; he's playing for England, he's playing for a very good team.
"I don't know exactly what is happening within the England team but I do know that in successful teams people stick together and support each other. I think that is what he needs to concentrate his mind on and forget about everything else.
"Just go out there and mix with the team, get involved with the cricket and once he gets a wicket I'm absolutely sure he'll just blend back into everything and everything will be fine."
Archer faces stiff competition from within the squad to play in the third Test, with James Anderson and Mark Wood back in contention for selection, along with three seamers in Stuart Broad, Sam Curran and Chris Woakes who bowled England to victory on Monday.
Stokes turned in a man-of-the-match display with bat and ball to help drag England across the line but may only be fit to play as a specialist batsman due to a quad muscle problem.
Holding says if he was in charge of selection, Woakes and Curran would definitely miss out - and there would be no repeat of the first Test, when Broad was left on the sidelines.
"I hear that England are adamant about picking the best fast bowlers this time around - their strongest pace attack - and in my eyes that would include Broad for sure," he said.
"Broad, Anderson, Mark Wood and, of course, Jofra Archer. You have Ben Stokes as a back-up but I would have the four strongest fast bowlers in my line-up and, as we saw, some of the West Indian batsmen are not that good against short-pitched bowling, so I'd be giving them a lot."
Watch the third and final Test of the #raisethebat Test series between England and West Indies live on Sky Sports Cricket from 10.30am on Friday, with over-by-over commentary and in-play clips across Sky's digital platforms.
To find out more about the Ruth Strauss Foundation and to donate please visit: ruthstraussfoundation.com
