Ben Stokes responds to Noosa revelations & Archer is out
00:00This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK.Bring more gear, carry more passengers, face greater challenges.Welcome to the world of Defender, with seating up to eight, ample cargo space, and legendary off-road capability.It's built to make the most of every adventure. Learn more at landrover.ca.This month in football, everything is up for grabs.The Premier League battles intensify, the Champions League reaches its crucial turning point,and the World Cup drawsets the stage
00:31for the biggest tournament on earth.Football Daily from the BBCbrings you sharp analysis,instant reaction,expert insightand the stories driving the gameon and off the pitch.Your essential football podcast
00:44delivered every day.Listen to Football Daily on Spotify,to Football Daily on BBC.comor wherever you get your podcasts.You're listening to the TMS podcast.from BBC Radio 5 Live.Hello, I'm Eleanor Aldroyd.Welcome to the TMS podcast from the MCG on Christmas Eve
01:08ahead of the Boxing Day test.I'm alongside our chief cricket reporter, Stefan Shemmelt,and our chief cricket commentator Jonathan Agnewwill hear from Captain Ben Stokesand will discuss the continued falloutfrom England's trip to Noosafollowing the third test defeat at Adelaide Oval,which sealed the Ashes win for Australia.
01:27You're listening to the TMS podcast,from BBC Radio 5 Live.Well, welcome to Melbourne.Happy Christmas.Jonathan, happy Christmas, Stefan.Here we are overlooking the massive bowl of the MCG.And Jonathan, Boxing Day Test is always a big occasion.You were saying you first played here in, what, 1978?
01:4719708 in front of about 30 people for Young England against Young Australia, yes.I also actually played here in front of 85,000 people in the first ever day.night one day international in Melbourne, which if people know what Melbourne's sporting folk are like,that was quite a big event. So I do know what it feels like. I'm putting myself into Ben Stoke'sshoes to walk off a massive Australian cricket ground having been thrashed. I've been there.How did it go first time when it was 30 people? Did you remember? I've got David Boone out.Bob Boone for about 10, I think. That's a flex. Well, it's good to have a decent England performanceat a massive ground like this. I don't think I'm quite ready to come back on Boxing Day though, on the back of that.
02:29you that much, Agas. Sorry to break that to you.Steph, here we are.You know, it's been a pretty difficult, reflective all week, hasn't it, really?For I think for all of us, we've all been, you know, we've all been prone tobouts of introspection.I imagine the England team have exactly the same, but they've got to go out there and play atest match.They have.
02:48And it must be, I was trying to think of another sport where once you're beaten, you getasked to stay on.I can't think of one, particularly where you have to keep playing the same appellate.I think people might be listening to this and shouting,well, what about a football team that's relegated before the end of the season?Well, at least you play against different teams.In a golf tournament, if you missed the cut, you're gone.Do you have to hang around for the weekend?
03:10How many Olympics have you covered, Ellie, where I don't know,if you do your events, they get you out of the Olympic Village, don't they, pretty quickly?Sure, that's true.That's true.And so all of that, I was trying to think, or, you know, tennis made you lose, gone.Test series, I don't think there's anything like it in sports,where you have to, even when you know you can't win, you have to keep fronting up day after day against the same opponent.That's incredibly difficult to do.
03:35It's a particular form of torture, isn't it?It really is.Well, we're going to hear now from the England captain Ben Stokes.There's been an awful lot going on in the camp and away from the camp as well.We'll discuss the revelations of more goings-on around that news to trip, a couple of videos emerging in the last couple of days as well.But first of all, let's hear Agger's conversation with the English.than Captain Ben Stokes.There's been a lot of noise behind, hasn't there?
04:00I mean, we last talked at Adelaide,clearly the ashes lost, and that was disappointing.But since then, the emergence of stories from Nusa,videos from Nusa, criticism of the player's preparation and behaviour.What's your reaction being to that,an investigation that Rob Keyes talked about into that behaviour?Yeah, my main concern right now,I'm obviously aware of reports and stuff that's circulating,
04:26around and for me as England captain my main concern is the players andeveryone in the dressing room it's it's one of those things now where you know it'sthe way that this has come about and it's almost like I know what it can feellike when everything just piles on top of you. It's hard, it's very, you can sort of feelvery, what's the word, insular, I guess. So my main thing right now is England captainis making sure that everyone's okay. And, you know, I don't know first, first hand, whatthis can actually make you feel like. And knowing that we've still got two huge games ofcricket to play. That's what I've got to do. I've got to show the support to the players.
05:28I've got to show the support to everyone else in the dressing room because, you know, my role asEngland captain is to try out there and win games of cricket and I need my players as well to bein the best possible frame of mind to do that. And I think right here and right now, the best thingfor me to be able to do is to make sure that everyone knows that they have my support, which isobviously through a time of quite a lot going on.I always want to win games of cricket for Englandand everyone else does in that dressing roomin moments like this where everything comes on top of you
06:02when everyone's hitting you hard.It's so, so hard to be in that right space.But when you've got the support of the people around youin the dressing room, it certainly does help.So, yeah, look, the main concern for me right nowas England captain is making sure thatI've got the players and everyone in the right space to go out there and try and return with two wins from Australiabecause that is the main priority for me right now and I'll always protect my players and everyone else in there as much as I possibly can
06:36because yeah it's these two games are really really important to us yeah was it inevitable thatthat do so is going to be a difficult optic I mean even if you're two nil up going off on a break but two nil downAnd it wasn't it always going to be a difficult cell and people knowing that you were there and all that sort of thing?Well, I think it's when you're winning and when you're winning, it's a lot easier to sort of not do what you want, but to do stuff.When you're losing like we have done it with 3-0 down, everything you say, everything you do gets criticise, analysed and rightly so.you don't really have a leg to stand on when you are 3-0 down in a big serieslike this but as I've just said all I can do all the senior players and theleaders within the group at the moment all they can do is try and support each
07:34other as best as we possibly can because yeah it's it is a tough place to be inright now but I've had some pretty good times over my career I've also had somepretty tough times and first you know this is probably the toughtime right now as an England captain that I'll have but you know I'm going to run awayfrom it and I feel like I will lead for the rest of this trip how I think I canhelp guys get through it yeah how will that be what what have you got in mindparticularly for those of you for those who have been have their fingers pointedat them for their behaviour I mean they're sort of play presumably are they and
08:16they're not going to be dropped or that sort of thing well that's itsupport and make sure that the focus is still on the cricket or the focus at the momentis obviously not on the cricket. There's a lot, well, it still is, but there's a lot goingon away from the cricket at the moment. And as I said, well, you know, I'm here to wingames cricket for the remainder of this tour. So, yeah, I need to be focusing on that as muchas I can and also need to make sure that the players are focusing on that as much as possibleas well. So, yeah. It's a big responsibility for you, Ben. I mean, you're out there leadingthe team you're bowling your batting all of that and you're having to kind of mentor and comfort
08:52players at the same time that's how are you handling that absolutely look it's that's part of the jobeverything's easy when it's going well it's these moments where um I guess the theresponsibility does fall on your shoulders a lot more than it ever has done and I will alwaysdo my best on the field I'll always do my best off the field and as I said I willalways, always protect my players, especially in moments like these.Did it make you enjoy the job when it's like this?I mean, do you feel, I don't know, does the extra responsibility sit well with you?Or is it, you know, it will be a bit of a pain?
09:34Well, again, responsibility, it comes with the job, I guess.You know, it's, as I say, like, when you're out there winning and everything you decide to do works, it's great.Everyone's giving you praise and saying this, saying that great things about year, it's ending, you know, when it doesn't quite work out like that, you know, how I handle that, how the rest of the group handles it, I think actually, you know, comes a lot of me and how I respond and how I react to those kind of things.So, yeah, when these two remaining games, you know, there is that big responsibility on how I handle myself and how I speak to the guys in there after this.Look, I'm so focused on these next two games.I'm so focused on what needs to be done out there in the middle.And I need to portray that in the dressing roomand the remainder of the quicker that we've got in the series.
10:26But in private moments,so when you go back to your room and you shut the door,you kind of feel it's an enormous weight on your shoulders?Yeah, it was like, gosh, it's an emotional job being England captain.I've done it for long enough to know that.And, yeah, I'll take it on, I embrace it.and it's definitely something that you know you're always having the back of your mind thatmoments like these will come when you take the job um so knowing that and fully understanding that
10:53actually makes these kind of things a little bit easier to deal with for that makes sensebut as i say i've had a lot throwing my way as when i was an england captainand i felt like i've i've handled that and managed that quite well and the reason why ifeel like i was able to do that was because of the support that i had around meso yeah as i've just said there i'll always you know supportthe people I feel need to support around me and right now this is one of those moments.Yeah, it's tricky time, Christmas Day and all that before the match. I mean, is thisthrown a bit of a dampener on all of that? I mean, get to rock up here on Christmas Day,
11:32MCG with a little bit of training, the families get to come down and you know, kids all,some of them might remember walking around the MCG outfield the day before Boxing Day.so I hope not and then again when we walk out here on boxing day you know we've got thewe got the three lines on our chest we got you know our representative numbers of what numberwe represent England for so you know there's still that to remember as well that we've got ahell of a lot to play for still here aggers we've got you know the badge the fans who comeout here and support us the the people who have represented England before usfor the people who were going to represent England when we're done.
12:14So, you know, that's sort of, I guess, enough to get everybody up for the remainder of these two games,even though we haven't been able to come here and achieve a goal that we wanted.That's kind of motivating, isn't it?There's stuff going on in the background.I said, come on, let's get out there and show them.Yeah, I guess so.And how you use that kind of stuff, I guess, is, you know, you either let it get on top of you too much,or you can use it as fuel if you want to use it as fuel.
12:38Certain things inspire different people.But yeah, look, everyone will be focused when we come to here on Boxing Dayand everyone wants to get that win.Remember, you can find all our features, podcasts and live commentaries on BBC Soundsby simply searching Ashes.You can hear every ball of the Boxing Day test match on 5 Live, 5 Sports Extraand BBC Sounds from 1055 on Christmas Day night.The TMS podcast from BBC Radio 5 Live.
13:10This month in football, everything is up for grabs.The Premier League battles intensify,the Champions League reaches its crucial turning point,and the World Cup draw sets the stage for the biggest tournament on earth.Football Daily from the BBC brings you sharp analysis,instant reaction, expert insight,and the stories driving the game on and off the pitch.Your essential football podcast, delivered every day.
13:38Listen to Football Daily on Spotify, to Football Daily on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.My name's Steve Bradnell, a sister manager of Royal Oak FC.You may have seen me online with Vinyl.Vinyl sensation.And now the BBC have given me the chance to set the footballing world banter eyes.This could be a great opportunity for us, lads, a podcast for the BBC.Can I just sayWhat's the podcast?
14:10BrilliantGreat startWell done BobBrilliantWe can completelyShow utter transparencyTo Royal Oak fansI'll use my charm
14:19Gift it gabGames goneThe Steve BracknellPodcastWatch on YouTubeListen on BBC soundsGoodness meHe was in a somber mood
14:29Today wasn't heYes I meanYou never quite knowWhat you're going to get with BenBut I think there's beenSo much out there nowSince Adelaidefrom McCullum from him
14:38from Rob Key of course as wellthat in a way I don't think how much choicewere to come out and be honest and openand I've been really opened his soul there a bitdidn't he about how he's feeling andit's just very sad I meanI cannot understandfor a nanosecond why
14:54anybody thought that a trip to Nusa was a good ideaI just don't see howthat was ever going to look anythingbut a disaster if they were losingquite hard to sell it if you're winning tooyou get out there on the beach you're arrogantYou can imagine the stuff.It's just bonkers.
15:09It was always going to end badly.This is a group of young men who were told they're on holiday.Well, we know what groups of young men will get up to when they go on holiday.They go to Amsterdam.They go to Prague.Have a great time.Yes, these are young men, but they're professional cricketers playing for England to win the ashes.They're here to play cricket.
15:27And I'm interested in what Stepman said a few moments ago about playing in the same opposition.That's why, actually, it's a good thing to go and play against other teams.get away, go and play in Port Pirigo and play in Bendigogo and play against a different teamif you haven't got the same bowlerrunning in at you time after timego and score some runs
15:44that's actually what a cricket touris supposed to be aboutand they've completely lost sight of thatI mean I thoughtsome of the stuff that Rob Keyand Brendan McCulloughsaid over the last few dayshas been quite mind-boggling really
15:54and I do feel sort of sorryfor the players because at the start of all thisI think before a ball was bowledagain we're talking that preparation in PerthI think we said, look, if they pack up and leave Sydney having lost, but having given it their best shot, they look in the mirror, as Duncan Fletcheroy's used to say, look at the man in the mirror, and they feel they're given everything, well, you can't do any more than that. You know, you've lost, you've lost a better team. But if you pack up and leave Australia knowing that you haven't given it your best shot, I think that's really sad. That's really sad.And clearly they haven't given the best shot. And everyone, I think, pretty much.around the team have admitted to that but but to kind of go back to thenoosa thing for a second step I mean as we said you were there it was the most
16:43predictable thing in the world that somebody with a smartphone was going totake some videos and post them partly because and just actually for youhaven't seen them remind remind us what was on those on those videos yeah whatcertainly circulated last night of Ben Duckett who appeared to be under theinfluence and the ECB told us last nightthat they're going to establish the facts around that.And that came, I don't know,how many hours after Rob Key had been speaking earlier on,
17:1112 hours maybe after Rob Key had been speaking onto say that he was going to look into.It's hard to believe he's by himself, by the way.Well, if he was by himself,that would be quite, also be quite concerning.It would.Where's the security?So, I mean, I think there's more to come on that.
17:24Yeah, so, and that came at the end of the daywhen Rob Kear had told us that he was going to look into what happened in Nuset.I think my opinion on Nusa hasn't changed too much in that the idea of, like you say, Aga, sometimes when you're winning, this is what it all comes down, but England are winning.And remember the very first basball test, so not when England won at Lords, when they were sort of all quite normal.The second one, when they beat New Zealand and Johnny Baxter made that sort of all.After that game, England were hanging over the Trent Bridge balcony, all having a drink.Remember what happened that night?Remember?
18:03The very famous takeaway in Nottingham,Mega Munch has got a place in English cricketing historywhere Ollie Pope was captured,getting his kebab in the early hours.And there are lots of other examples we can point to.And we all laughed, didn't we?Because they'd been brilliant on that test match.Absolutely.
18:18Loads of other examples.Jimmy Anderson sinks a Guinnesson the Lord's balcony after his last test match.Ian Botham, he almost uses a tactic, didn't he,to incapacitate a purpose.There are a few I could list in county cricket. Yes, but also rest in the days of rest days in test matchesYes, but some of that's apocryphal this has been loose and this team has been loose and the squad has been loose for a long timeThey were loose in New Zealand the one-day series coming here absolutely lots of stuff coming out of that and the warning bells were sounding and they were ignored
18:51And that is an issue that that the proper bosses at ECB are gonna have to get hold of the culture of this squad isnot good and that that's the the flip side so when everything goes well andEngland have a drink we go what a top bunch of lads but remember before thelast ashes at home golf trip in Scotland a week beforehand England findthemselves two nil down the previous test tour of New Zealand this time lastyear England went two nil up had a great time after that they only trained oneday before the third test in Hamilton and they got hammered it's just of coursewe can keep it we can sit here and go great when you win bad when you lose and that what
19:34it is it does boil down to but then can you just use that only in the bad example you've gotto put it to one side when they're good as well well we're sitting up here watching theEngland team currently on the outfield training Ben Stokes out ahead I mean he was verydefensive of his players I think I guess or saying he'll protective maybe of his playersnot defending their behaviour but he's having to do this in his time who'swas sent home from a lion's tour for bad behavior drinking basically and then of coursethere was the stokes night the um christmas club business so i mean he's been there he knows whatit's like uh to be under the spotlight for the wrong reasons um and in a way i mean what else what
20:17else can he do i mean i'm just saying the question there you're going to drop them well that'sthe only other option is you rather support them or you drop them and i don't think that'sgoing to happen largely because in ducats case there is no one else to open the batting umNo, it's just disappointing. It's very disappointing.And we've said there's a lot on this tour, that this should degenerate as it has done, but I'm not entirely surprised.We've spoken, Aga's quite a lot about the culture of this England team and how much Stokes, McCullum and Key need to take responsibility for this.Now, it would take someone very hard-hearted not to listen to Ben Stokes today and not feel emotional about that, about what he's going.going through right now. However, if he's allowed this to happen, knowing what he has been
21:06through in the past, is there anything he could have done previously to protect the playersfrom this? If he knows what maybe Ben Duckett is going through right now and has been partof this culture being allowed to develop, for as much as I felt emotional listening to himin the press conference, you can see a man bearing his soul and saying, this is aas difficult as it's been as the time as England captain.But he still does need to take some responsibilityfor the situation England find themselves in.But I'll go back to my original point is,
21:40why are they going to New Zealand?You don't go to Newster to sit in your roomand sit out at the seaside and the beach and the bars.You don't sit at North Netflix.They could have gone to an enclosed golf resort, couldn't they?I mean, we said this at the time.You know, that they actually,that we almost kind of saw it as like a positive thing
21:58that they were out in public,were you know they were mixing with people they should have gone and played a game ofcricket well I mean yeah but they but yes I mean yeah that's what they're hereto do yeah the weight of captaincy as you as you basically indicated to himJonathan you know he's captain he's bowling he's batting it is such a lot forhim to carry on his shoulders isn't it and I kind of feel that that weight isharder than it's it's ever been although you know as he said you've got to take thethe rough with smooth they've been good to
22:29times as well as bad times yeah I mean he's not a quitter we know he's taking timeout of the game because of mental health issues he needed a break I suspect youmight want to break after this because it's as captain you do feel that you are onyour own yes he's got Brenda McCullum he's got you know he's got Rob Keognearound the place or they're just all different generations I don't know who Idon't know who Ben Stokes necessarily goes and talks to when he's got some family hereout of Christmas his mum's here Neil Fairbrother I think would be a bigBig year for it.
23:00Yeah, I suspect so.But it's a very isolated job.Personally, I hope Ben Stokes continues.I mean, I just think he's the best man.I think he's probably the only man at the moment.To Captain England, and I hope this doesn't push him over the edge,because that would be really sad.Just charging around trying to take a scyre of a catch
23:22and having to roll over and, you know, 10 inches.He loves the responsibility.He really does.He does enjoy all that.But it's just, you know, he's the one who having to go out there and face it.He's the one who's having to go out there and face it and face the questioning.He's the one who always be remembered as captain of this disastrous tour.And unless they can win these two games.
23:44And you know, I've been in situations in teams where you feel the world's against you.And you're being written off and you're misbehaved or whatever.It can galvanize you.You know, you can get in there.It goes one of two ways.You rather get a complete bunker mentality.the whole thing completely falls apart or actually go out and you say right we're going todamn well show these people we're going out there we're a team and so you know that that could happen
24:09that that could happen but they were starting off from a pretty low place on boxing day morningone thing we've always been told certainly by this team about this team is how unified they arethey've always told us that they stick together that ben stokes and brenda mccullum this is one of thethings that their key strategies is about putting together this England team that they sticktogether in adversity through thick and thin and you're right I guess that I don't know you you give inEngland no price are you a pro boxer all things being equal they they will be massive underdogs whenthey walk out of the ground I mean yes there's some English noise here but I mean they're talkingabout 90,000 being here yeah and we know that Australia are already missing Pat Cummins and
24:52Nathan Lyon I mean that hasn't seemed to matter throughout the seriesthey're going to make some changes. Steve Smith's going to come back and captained.But England are huge, huge underdogs. But you're right. You know, sometimes that can be the thingthat produces a performance. We have seen it occasionally from England teams at the end ofAshes Tours, admittedly, not for quite some time.They always call Pyrrhic victories, though, aren't they? I mean, ones that don't really matter.But do you think they are, though, because actually I think, you know, there are a lot of England fanswho've come out just for these two tests, you know, for Christmas and New Year test matches.
25:25they could get some pride back by winning here or in Sydney, then that's going to be important.That's more than the period picture. Absolutely. Absolutely. And I don't think it'll take any pressureoff. It'll laugh the frustration in the way that they've come back and won two games when they couldhave won other games in their series as well. But that's what they've got to do. They've got to unite.I mean, that's what McCullum and Stokes and the others out there, Triscothic and Jekin Patel.All these people, that's what they've got to do. They've got to get these players together.I think a few of them owe Stokes a performance as well.Oh, yeah.
25:56If you think that everything that Stokes has been throughto get himself on the field,everything that he puts into being England captain,I mean, it's always 20 out of 10 for effort, isn't it,from Ben Stokes.And what we saw it last week in Adelaideafter he made his runsand he felt he couldn't bowl on the following day
26:13and all those sorts of things.And now he's the one who's fronting upto answer these questions about may or may not gone on in Nusa.A few of his senior players have gone missing on this tourthat they owe him a performance.Jacob Bethel finally gets his chance, Stefan.What do you think of that?Well, what an occasion to come back into the England team.
26:33And it is the culmination of a long-running saga around the England batting line up, isn't it?I never watched Game of Thrones.I feel like I've been watched, I don't know, Game of Batting or whatever, Bethel and Pope for the past year.Because it was just over a year ago that I saw.I stood in Hamilton after Jacob Bethel had made three 50s in his first three test matches,batting at number three.And we listened to Brendan McCullum and Ben Stokes, give him big licks.At the time, Zach Crawley had just been knocked over for fun by Matt Henry,
27:06but they were still giving Zach Crawley lots of backing.And that support, it didn't seem like it was there for Ollie Pope.And I was convinced that come the home summer, Jacob Bethel was going to be England's number three.And for whatever reason, some reasons in their control,some reasons not in their controlEngland have always blinkedon making that call of Bethelin the side for Pope
27:29andinstill all the things that we think aboutJacob Bethel that he is a generationaltallow that he's going to have a huge futurethat he's gone to play in the IPLwith Virat Coley all those sorts of thingsstill hasn't got a first class 100and part of that's because he hasn't played
27:46a great deal of first class cricket since he madehis England debut I thinkthe way that England have handled the entire situationhas set both men up to failand realistically coming on this tourthey knew no more about either Olly Popeor Jacob Bethel than they didwhen I was talking to those guys back in Hamilton
28:06and now Jacob Bethelhas got to walk out in front of 100,000 people on boxing dayand perform.Yeah, I mean it's a huge challenge for himI mean we saw him bat at the Ovalin that test match and he was all over the placeHe's a young man who hasn't played very much cricket.And every coach I've spoken to who's come across Jacob Bethel
28:27has said that he is a prodigious check of talent.I mean, they all have from school upwards.I hope that he doesn't look at the,we've talked about the looseness of this squadand think it's all a bit of fun.You know, because it's actually not.He'll realize it's not fun and he walks out there on Boxing Day more.but I mean it is it's asking it's asking a huge amount for someone of of such little experience to come out and
28:57And and play the role he's going to be asked to playThere were a lot of coaches who will be saying yeah absolutely right he could have done this a couple of years ago to quote Michael Powell I saw on a planeRecently who coached him at school he wasn't the least bit surprised that he was being put into this positionBut you know Australia's tough it's going to be hard it is going to be very hard indeed but it does appear that they've turned a pageand that you will have a couple of games nowso we will see how he goesbecause Bethel really has got the first opportunityto stake a claim to New England
29:31for want of a better termbecause we don't know what's going to happenover the next couple of monthswe don't know who's going to be the head coachor the director of cricketcome the time England next player test serieswhich is against New Zealand in JuneBethel will have the T20 World Cup
29:48he'll be part of that squad I thinkto further is claimed as an international cricketer.But after that, if there is regime changeat the top of English cricket,and we have just been through a periodwhere performances in county crickethaven't always counted for a lot.We could be going into a period
30:06where performances in county cricketcount for a great deal.Now, in the early part of the season,Jacob Bethel's off to the IPL.So is someone like Jordan Cox, so is Ben Duckett.So if there is going to be change,around the top of the England batting order at some point.If Bethel doesn't take this chance,
30:24it could be anyone who's lining up against New Zealandat the start of the home summer.You can think of some of the names that have been through the Lions,Tom Haynes, Ben McKinney, Emilio Gay,Asa tried finish the season so well for Glamorgan,made 100 for the Lions against Australia, eh?What about guys like Dom Sibley, Haseep Hamid,Alex Lees, who've been tried before,
30:46who may think, well, you know what?My name might be back in the mix.The early part of this summer, if Jacob Bethel doesn't take his chanceand we're still having a conversation around, I don't know, is that Crawley?He probably needs 100 in the next two test matches to absolutely secure his place.The early part of the English summer is going to be very interesting.And Steph Joffar Archer has given so much to the side over the last three tests,but sadly he's now out for the rest of the tour.
31:10Yeah, desperately disappointing for Joffa Archer,who spent years battling elbow and back injuries in order to return to test cricket.Remember that comeback?he made against India in July, took a wicket in his first over.One of the most emotional, almost life-affirming moments.I think I've seen on a cricket field,and we all wondered whether or not Joffa Archer could become the bowlerthat we thought he would be in test cricket.
31:35He's been excellent in this series,taken nine wickets, also registered his maiden half centuryin that third test in Adelaide.But a slight warning in Adelaidewhen Archer was limited to only 12.4 overs,in Australia's second innings.A scan in Melbourne on Tuesday revealed this side strain.He'll stay around the squad for the fourth test.
32:00Then he'll go back to the UK to be assessed.England will wait to see on Archer's availabilityfor the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lankabecause that only begins in February.Thank you, Stefan.Thank you, Jonathan.That's it for this episode of the TMS podcast.Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode.
32:17Just search Ashes on BBC Sounds to find all our contentand you can hear every ball of the Boxing Day teston 5 Live, 5 Sports Extraand BBC Sounds from 1055 on Christmas Day nightand a very happy Christmas to you all.This winter, cricket's oldest rivalry is reignited.England and Australia, Dubai,Battle to compete for the Ashes.
32:50That is extraordinary.Hear live ball by ball commentary on Fife Sports Extra.And get analysis and reaction of every day's play with the Test Match Special podcast.The Stamps out of the ground.Test match special at the Ashes.Listen on BBC Sounds.This month in football, everything is up for grabs.The Premier League battles intensified.
33:17The Champions League reaches its crucial turning pointand the World Cup draw sets the stage for the biggest tournament on earth.Football Daily from the BBC brings you sharp analysis,instant reaction, expert insight,and the stories driving the game on and off the pitch.Your essential football podcast delivered every day.Listen to Football Daily on Spotify,to Football Daily on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.
33:47Thank you.
There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click any sentence in the transcript to leave one.
