‘The whole spectacle made me uneasy’

Pacer Jofra Archer has been cleared to return to the England camp after his biosecure bubble breach, but admitted he has struggled to find motivation and lashed out at the attention his transgression has received.

Archer was ruled out of the second Test against the West Indies on the morning of the match after it was revealed he had breached England's strict biosecurity protocols by travelling to his home between the first and second Tests.

"We knew we had to go to Manchester via certain points. I didn't. To me, home is home. A safe place. I picked some stuff up, dropped some stuff off. It was no big deal," Archer wrote in his column with UK tabloid The Daily Mail.

Archer spent five days in isolation -- allowed out of his hotel room only for solitary fitness sessions -- but has rejoined the squad after twice testing negative for Covid-19.

"This whole week has been extremely tough and to spend five days in isolation has given me a lot of thinking time on where I am at.

"To be stuck in a hotel room in Manchester was hard. You know you cannot focus on the game being played on the other side of the bedroom curtains and it was frustrating not being able make an impact on the field.

"I found I was struggling for motivation in the circumstances when it came to returning to bowling in the nets.

"When I walked outside of my room for the first time since being placed into self-isolation … I heard the cameras clicking with every single step I took.

"The whole spectacle made me feel uneasy … I haven't committed a crime and I want to start feeling myself again."

Archer's comments come as England head coach Chris Silverwood ponders a headache for the deciding Test against the West Indies. England levelled the three-Test series 1-1 with a 113-run win at Old Trafford, with the third Test to be played at the same venue starting Saturday.

Silverwood now has a fully fit contingent of fast bowlers to choose from for the deciding Test, with Archer seen as a likely starter, creating a squeeze between Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad, while Mark Wood, Chris Woakes and Sam Curran have all staked claims over the two Tests.

"It's never easy, and you're always going to get push back, but you try to be as honest as possible," Silverwood said.