‘He hasn’t got me out’: When Steve Smith responded to Jofra Archer’s fiery Lord’s bouncer with double century in Ashes 2019

“I can play the other two [against India] if they let me,” Archer told Sky Sports. “I don’t want to lose this series. I told Keysey [England men’s managing director, Rob Key] I wanted to play the Test summer and I wanted to play the Ashes. I think one tick is already there and I will do everything possible in my power to be on the plane in November.”

Should Archer board the plane for Down Under, it will set up a fiery and potentially exciting clash. Archer could once again go up against Australia’s batting bulwark, Steve Smith, six years on from their epic Ashes 2019 duel, which incidentally began at Lord’s during the England fast bowler’s Test debut.

⏪ Throwing it back to Jofra Archer's brutal spell against Steve Smith in 2019 😱🔥

📍 Lord's, London pic.twitter.com/nb6t6c9eIo

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 9, 2025

‘Knocked out but not out

Marking his maiden Test appearance for England at Lord’s, exactly a month after lifting the ODI World Cup at the venue, Archer made headlines when he felled Smith with a menacing bouncer on the back of a barrage of short balls. Retiring hurt on 80 not out, Smith returned briefly before being trapped lbw on 92. The Australia No. 4 was ruled out concussed before the second innings, as Marnus Labuschagne took his place to become the first-ever concussion substitute in international cricket in an eventually drawn Test.

WATCH THE FULL ARCHER V SMITH DUEL FROM ASHES 2019:

Smith would later miss the Headingley Test, etched in the history books for Ben Stokes’ epic fourth-innings hundred in a one-wicket win, chasing 359.

Cleared to make a comeback from concussion in the fourth match in Manchester, Smith was clear in shrugging of any advantage to Archer, even stating that his bowling peers had delivered a better challenge.

“There’s been a bit of talk that he’s got the wood over me, but he hasn’t actually got me out.

“He hit me on the head on a wicket that was a bit up and down at Lord’s. All the other bowlers have had more success against me, I daresay. I’ve faced them a bit more, but they’ve all got me out a lot more. I’m pretty comfortable with that. Now it’s just about getting out there and playing the game,” said Smith.

England paceman @JofraArcher terrorised Australia's batsmen four years ago.

But Steve Smith and co can breathe a huge sigh of relief after an update from England's medical staff this evening.#Ashes 🏏 | ✍️ @DanielCherny https://t.co/YL3U6X8SwB

— CODE Cricket (@codecricketau) May 16, 2023

Soaring return

Smith would let the bat do the talking as he smoked his highest Test score in England in the first innings of the Manchester Test, batting 319 balls to reach 211. Archer would go wicket-less as Smith would back up the double century with a brilliant 82 in the second innings as Australia marched to a commanding 185-run win.

Smith would similarly shut down a Twitter (X) post in 2023 from Australian sports media outlet, Code Sports, which claimed that Archer had ‘terrorised’ Australia’s batters in the 2019 Ashes.

“Terrorised? Remind me when I was dismissed by him…,” Smith would write in response on X. Indeed, despite the Lord’s bumper that caught him on the neck, Smith has never ceded control to Archer. In five innings, Archer has conceded 94 runs to Smith without ever dismissing him, conceding 60 of those runs in boundaries.

Will 2025 mark a high-octane sequel to the Archer-Smith rivalry?