Ashes 2019: Jofra Archer reveals plan to ‘rattle’ Steve Smith after hitting Australian batsman on the neck

The fast bowler’s bouncer forced Smith to retire hurt before returning to make 92 on day four of the second Test

Jofra Archer has revealed England’s plan was to get Steve Smith “rattled” during an intense battle on day four of the second Ashes Test.

The fast bowler hit the Australia batsman on the neck with a bouncer leading to him retiring hurt, before returning to make 92.

England struggled to contain Smith during the first Test, with the batsman making two centuries to inspire victory at Edgbaston.

But Archer thrived on his Test debut at Lord’s, consistently bowling north of 90 mph to give the hosts a new dimension to their bowling attack.

“I just tried to get him rattled,” Archer told Sky Sports when discussing the tactics behind bowling at Smith.

“It was fun. I was just trying to get him out really.”

There were concerning moments though as Smith reacted after the brutal hit, evoking memories of the tragic death of Phillip Hughes from 2014.

And Archer admitted it was an uncomfortable to watch as the teams waited on Smith to recover.

Archer hits Smith during an intense spell of fast bowling (Popperfoto via Getty) (Getty)

“Honestly I don’t know at the time,” Archer added. “Seeing somebody go down, you don’t want to see anybody carried off on a stretcher, especially what happened a few years ago. It’s never a nice thing.”

Australia coach Justin Langer admitted the incident brought back “rough memories” of the tragic death of Hughes.

“There’s obviously some rough memories of a blow like that, there’s no fun in it,” Langer said.

Smith is attended to after being hit on the neck (Getty)

“He went through the concussion protocols and seemed to be coming up OK. He passed all that and he came back in the changing room and had a bit of a smile on his face, he was more worried about his arm, thankfully that’s OK, he’s had an X-ray on that at the hospital this afternoon.

“I’m sure he’ll be very sore tomorrow, his arm and his neck but he was in good spirits.

“He passed all the testing and that’s why he came back out.”