"Master" Jimmy Anderson backed to keep going as England hero chases Ashes glory
Jimmy Anderson should be carried round Old Trafford on a throne next week – but England team-mate Chris Woakes is not convinced it will be the king's Test farewell.
Win or lose, selected or not, after 688 Test wickets Anderson deserves all the adulation his Lancashire flock can shower on him at the fourth Ashes Test starting on Wednesday. He will turn 41 during the match, for heaven's sake, and Woakes - who delivered the winning hit in the Headingley thriller last weekend - suspects the Burnley Boomerang might play on long enough to join Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne as the only bowlers to top 700 wickets.
He said: “We are lucky to have had Jimmy for so long, and who knows how much longer we'll be able to call on him? I have a gut feeling that he might have a lot more left in the tank because Jimmy always proves the doubters wrong.
“He may want to go past 700 Test wickets, but whenever the time comes for him to call it a day – and I'm not making any assumptions that this will be his last game or his last series – we have been blessed that he's been such a master of his craft for 20 years.
“In my book he's not just England's greatest-ever bowler but one of the greatest ever to grace Test cricket. The paying public and fans watching on TV are in awe of his technique when they watch the super-slow motion replays of how the ball comes out of his hand... but so are we in the dressing room, and we're his peers.
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“I always feel you are in the presence of greatness when fellow professionals are in awe of what you do. We've seen it with some of Ben Stokes ' innings recently and it's the same when Jimmy has the ball in his hand.
“Some people think he might he hard to approach for advice, and we all know he can be a bit grumpy at times, but when you talk bowling with him, you can't shut him up. You can't put a price on the little nuggets the greats pass on.”
How much longer does Anderson have at the top? Have your say in the comments section
Jimmy Anderson has played in two of the first three Ashes tests in 2023 (PA)Anderson managed just three wickets at 75.33 in the first two Tests of the series, branding the moribund Edgbaston pitch “kryptonite” to his swing and faring little better at Lord's. But with Ollie Robinson's back spasm at Headngley unlikely to offer England any warranty against recurrence, the case for recalling Anderson at a ground where the pavilion end is now an eponymous tribute to his genius looks irresistible.
At Old Trafford, his 10 Test appearances have yielded 37 wickets at 22.02 apiece, much in line with his record in the Bazball era (48 wickets at 21.22 each in 12 Tests). He is taking nothing for granted about making an encore in front of his adoring Lancashire flock – and nor should he.
Anderson admitted earlier this week: “There is absolutely no chance nostalgia will come into selection for the next Test. Letting Jimmy Anderson bowl at the Jimmy Anderson End because it is a nice story will not be a thought in the heads of Ben Stokes or Brendon McCullum. They will pick the strongest team to compete with Australia.”
Team-mate Chris Woakes isn't sure this series will mark Anderson's test cricket farewell (Getty Images)Woakes, a World Cup winner with the white ball four years ago, will also relish his return to Old Trafford, where his unbeaten 84 pulled off a gripping three-wicket win against Pakistan two years. Gripping three-wicket win? Sounds familiar.
“I wouldn't say I'm used to making the winning hit in a Test match, but it's definitely nice when it happens,” said Woakes. "That Pakistan game was during Covid times so there were no fans in the ground, but it was still an amazing memory.
“To do it again at Headingley in an Ashes Test, with the series on the line, was a special feeling – and after being out of the side for a while made it extra-special. To contribute in any shape or form, after playing not as much red-ball cricket as I would have liked, would have been pleasing enough, but I would have snapped your hand off for six wickets in the match and a crucial 32 not out to get us over the line.
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“The last few days have been nice, with a lot of people getting in touch to say congratulations, but I've got two little girls aged five and two at home, and they help keep me grounded! The body was pretty sore after four intense days, but we will get out heads in the right space and be ready to go for it again at Old Trafford.”
Chris Woakes was speaking to promote Super 1s, a national programme giving young people with a disability the chance to play regular competitive cricket. For more information about Super 1s, go to www.lordstaverners.org/super1s
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