Veteran England fast-bowler James Anderson has opened up on his retirement plans saying he wants to bow out on a nice note. Anderson is currently facing India at the Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot in the third Test of their five-match series.
Anderson has played 185 Test matches for England, claiming a record 695 wickets from them. Anderson has the most wickets by a pacer in the longest format of the game. He sits behind legendary Australia spinner Shane Warner (708) and former Sri Lanka spinner Mutiah Muralidaran (800) in terms of wickets in Tests.
Speaking to the Telegraph, as quoted by talkSPORT, Anderson said he doesn’t want to drag out his retirement, saying he is hoping that one day he wakes up and knows that it’s time to retire. Anderson is on the cusp of becoming the only pacer to claim 700 wickets in Test cricket.
“I would like to be able to go out on a nice note. I don’t want to drag it out and people are thinking: ‘Can you just do one.’ Morgs [Morgan] last year woke up and just knew it was time to call it a day. I am just hoping that is the case,” said Anderson.
Rajkot Test, Day 1 Scorecard
The 41-year-old went on to say that he feels privileged to be in this position, adding that it would be nice to go out on his own terms. Anderson is also the third-highest wicket-taker across formats and is edging closer to the 1000-wicket mark, an exclusive club of which only Warne (1001) and Muraidharan (1347) are part of.
“I feel privileged to have got in a position where I can make a decision because, as a bowler, it is usually taken out of your hands with injury or selection. It will be nice to go out on my own terms, but when that will be, you just have to wait and see,” Anderson added.
Anderson bowled 19 overs on Day 1 against India in Rajkot, giving away 51 runs at an economy of 2.68. India posted 326 for 5 at the end of the day on the back of centuires from skipper Rohit Sharma and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, who remained unbeaten on 110.
Debutant Sarfaraz Khan made a positive impression, scoring a 66-ball 62 prior to an unfortunate run-out dismissal in the final session.
