Carlton’s premier cricket spinner showcased his skills against six other domestic BBL academies and four international teams, snaring five wickets at an average of 25 and an economy rate of only 6.9 per over, a tidy return for spinners in T20 competitions.
This comes after the 28-year-old’s star turn in April’s T10 competition for the Renegades, where he claimed a five-wicket haul and hat-trick.
His development in the white-ball game has come in leaps and bounds, and lining up alongside the likes of State-contracted players like Will Sutherland and Fergus O’Neill, the St Augustine’s school-teacher was thrilled to hone his craft in the ‘Gades camp.
“It was just cool to be around that sort of environment and see what it's like,” Archer said.
“It was cool to be challenged like that, and being put under the pump (was something) I really enjoyed.
“Especially in T20 cricket, you're trying to make wickets conducive to batters scoring runs, so there's never really too much in them.
“It was nice to bowl economically most of the time, but there was definitely some learning to take out of it as well.”
Armed with good pace and a devious wrong-un, Archer said at times he traded his naturally attacking line at the stumps for different areas, enticing other modes of dismissal and managing the batters on strike.
It’s a good show of Archer’s evolution against top talents, but he’s not getting ahead of himself with his name floated in tandem with a BBL contract.
“You have to be very lucky and have a lot of things go your way to get that opportunity,” he said.
“I feel like my game's in a pretty good spot and I understand it well.
“I think if I ever were to get an opportunity at the next level, I'd be able to grab it with both hands.
“There are heaps of good people, good spinners around the country, even good quicks that aren't getting that opportunity.
“If I am lucky enough to get that opportunity, it's pretty cool.
"If not, I know that when I've had the opportunity to put my hand up for it, I've gone as hard as I can and put my best foot forward.”
Meanwhile, Archer is turning his eyes to the red-ball game.
After playing 13 games with Tatura in the Goulburn Valley League and finishing his campaign as one of its best players, Archer is now in Victorian Premier Cricket pre-season with Carlton, saying he’s excited to launch into his third season with the club.
He’s taken 67 wickets at an average of 19 since crossing over from Greenvale.
“It’s looking pretty exciting,” he said.
“The last two years have been really good playing in grand finals; hopefully, there's a few more of those to come because it's pretty cool playing in that business end of the year.”
