Joe Root has called on his England players to sign off from their “bizarre” summer of biosecure Test cricket by throwing everything at Pakistan and, more specifically, this means Jofra Archer letting the handbrake off to deliver some 90mph bursts. England’s red-ball cricketers will have spent nine weeks locked in the bubble – bar a handful of days at home after the West Indies series – and Root admitted there are no guarantees when their next action will be or if crowds can return next summer. Thus sitting 1-0 up going into Friday’s third Test, and having been told that 10.30am starts will be available to the officials in this match should weather or bad light become a factor, Root has told the team to “give everything to each other and the badge.” He added: “It is so uncertain when we will next play and be together again, so we owe it to ourselves – and all the hard work we’ve put in over this period within this bubble – to not let ourselves down over these five days. “The attitude and effort will be there as always and we’ll make sure we turn up and throw everything at Pakistan and leave the Test summer with a brilliant performance under our belt. That’s the plan anyway.” A fresh pitch awaits the two sides, despite fears the rain may force the same one to be used again, and Root, though cagey about his XI, admitted there was “a good chance at least one” of Archer or Mark Wood will play, making Sam Curran the possible fall guy. Under further questioning he certainly gave the impression that Archer is down to play and, with Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad once again sharing the new ball, the 25-year-old’s role has been told his role in the side is simple. “I think there may be a time for [the new ball] to come in the future and more likely abroad,” said Root. “Anderson and Broad set the tone extremely well and they are the best to exploit those conditions first up. The exciting thing is that you’ve then got Jofra to come in and hopefully get the ball zipping around at 90-plus mph. “It has been made very clear what his role is to play this week, [Chris Silverwood] said as much and that gives him real clarity going into the game. I think he’s really keen to show what he can do. He’s coming off the back of a rest and he’s full of energy, so hopefully we’ll see him at his best this week.” Though English cricket still faces a loss of £107m, and the women’s team remains fixtureless unless a late touring team comes forward, the staging of six Test matches has been something of a triumph given the uncertainty at the start of the pandemic. Root said: “We were dreading the thought of not seeing international cricket and so to be at the back end of the Test part is credit to everyone involved. It’s made for entertaining viewing at times and I expect nothing less in this final fixture. “I remember walking out for my first innings on a hat-trick ball and it was deadly silent. It was bizarre. One more week, one more big push and hopefully we can sign off with a win.” Root described himself as “impressed” with the team’s progress this summer even if, bowling-wise, the attack has leant heavily on Broad, Chris Woakes and, to a slightly lesser extent, Jimmy Anderson. There was an admission of some frustration that the surfaces have meant that Dom Bess has only bowled in three of the five Tests to date, with Root hoping he has “an opportunity to play to make a real impact” and adding “he’s done the best he can.” He added: “We know we have hurdles to overcome and things that we want to get better at if we are going to be that No 1 team in the world. But the mindset we have and the work ethic gives us the best chance of getting there. I can certainly see this group of players going on to do that.”