188 matches, 350 innings, over 40,000 balls, 704 wickets, Average- 26.45, 32 five-wicket hauls and 3 ten-wicket hauls — that's James Anderson's Test career in numbers which came to an end on July 12th, 2024. Given the way cricket has transformed in recent years, with a span of over 100 days in 2024 with no Test cricket played anywhere in the world, some of these numbers will be impossible to emulate. And then when you realise that Anderson has done that over the course of a marathon career as a fast bowler only adds context and depth to the sheer numbers
Anderson played his first International match back in 2002 when T20I cricket hadn't even started, but he made Test cricket his priority even when others around him had started to look the other way. But perhaps in deciding to retire after the first of the three-Test series against West Indies, Anderson reflected his true character.
Fair enough he might have got a wake-up call from England captain Ben Stokes, but a performer like Anderson could have easily demanded an entire series before hanging up his boots. A favourable scenario which would have even guaranteed the English pacer a finish ahead of bitter-rivals Australia's Shane Warne's record of 708 wickets.
Eventually, James Anderson finished his career falling 4 short of the Warne's record. A testament not suiting to his critical moniker "Home Track Bully".
James Anderson Best Encapsulates The Spirit Of A Team Sport.
"I know the time is right to step aside and let others realise their dreams just like I got to, because there is no greater feeling," Anderson's retirement announcement post on Instagram read, giving us an insight into his personality.
For much of his career, Anderson was tagged a "Home Track Bully". Whether or not that tag is justified could be a debate for another day but when the ball was in his court and he could have simply played the other Two tests of a home series on reputation alone, the 41-year-old responded to the captain's call and said 'Anything for the team, sir'.
Anderson retires from as iconic a venue as Lord's — the same place from where his Test career started 21 years ago, months after beginning his international career in an ODI against Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
Jimmy, as the cricket world refers to him, leaves behind not only a rich legacy as a fast bowler but in not worrying about a record to break, he perhaps best encapsulates the spirit of a team sport.
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