Mark Butcher believes Jason Roy’s form in the World Cup could earn him a call-up to the Test side for this summer’s Ashes series.
The 28-year-old struck a brilliant 153 in England’s 106-run victory over Bangladesh in Cardiff on Saturday and is the second highest run-scorer in this year’s tournament with 215 runs in three matches, behind only Shakib Al Hasan.
Despite enduring a torrid day in the the hosts’ loss against Pakistan, where Roy put down a relatively simply catch and was undone by spinner Shadab Khan just three overs into England’s innings, Butcher was impressed by the opening batsman’s immediate turnaround in form. “He just had one of those days when England played Pakistan,” Butcher told Sky Sports News. “He is capable of taking some of the most eye-catching catches but dropped one and then was dismissed early when they opened with leg spin against him.
“In the performance against Bangladesh he showed he can play spin, he has got so much power, he really only has to half hit it and will clear most boundaries.
“He is a really strong guy, terrifically confident and one of the beautiful things about what he and Jonny Bairstow do at the top of the order for England is if they are chasing they tend to break a run chase within the first 15 overs.
“If they get themselves in, Jason then has the ability to go on and get mountainous scores. That takes so much pressure off the batsman coming behind them.
“He is a strong character and is a very good player and people will start talking about if he should bat at the top of the order in the Ashes team as well. All of this is doing him no end of good and more importantly it is doing England no end of good.”
Former England international Butcher also feels that fast bowler Jofra Archer has added another dimension to the bowling unit in their quest for a maiden 50-over title.
“I saw Jofra for the first time maybe three or four years ago bowling at Taunton, making the ball bounce alarmingly and just generally generating pace from nowhere,” he added. “In that moment you sit up and take notice.
“The kid has got ability that so few people in the world possess, he is an absolute one-off and is capable of making the very best batsmen in the world look very uncomfortable.
“He has slotted into the team and his performances so far look like he’s played 50 or 60 ODIs, not that it is just his fourth or fifth appearance.
