England fast bowler Jofra Archer took two wickets in his first competitive match for almost two months in a County Championship game for Sussex against Kent on Thursday.
The 26-year-old has been recovering from a long-standing elbow injury and also had surgery on his right hand to remove a piece of glass from a cut he suffered while cleaning a fish tank.
He claimed the first two wickets to fall at Hove, dismissing England team-mate Zak Crawley and Kent skipper Daniel Bell-Drummond as the visitors were bowled out for 145.
Archer finished with figures of 2-29 from 13 overs.
“My fitness is fine,” said Archer, who played for the Sussex 2nd XI last week.
“I thought I bowled okay. I played in the second team last week and it’s good to get some confidence and I felt fine. I bowled in short spells for protection in case we had a long day but it was overcast, which helped a bit. There was a bit of management, but it all worked out.”
Archer will be hoping to be fully fit for England’s two Test matches against New Zealand next month.
England have a busy schedule for the remainder of the year, with the New Zealand games followed by a five-Test series against India, ahead of the T20 World Cup in India and the Ashes in Australia.
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