James Anderson, the veteran England pacer is all set to play his final Test match at Lord’s later this week. The first Test against West Indies will be the last of his career that spanned over two decades.
England will be playing a three-match Test series that is part of the IC WTC 2023-24. Lord’s will host the first Test from July 10-14, followed by Test matches at Trent Bridge (July 18-22) and Edgbaston ( July 26-30).
The two nations who recently played in the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and the USA will now focus on Test cricket. The focus also will be on James Anderson. The veteran England pacer has played 187 Test matches with 700 Test wickets to his name.
After Sachin Tendulkar with 200 Test matches, no one has played more Test matches than James Anderson aged 41 currently. He has picked up 87 wickets against the West Indies and will get his chance to add to that tally in the first Test. He has picked up 100-plus Test wickets against three countries with the most against India (149). The next Test will be the 188th and the final of his career.
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He addressed the media ahead of his final Test match and spoke about keeping his emotions in check over the next week.
James Anderson Speaks Ahead Of His Final Test Match
“The big thing for me is bowl well, get a win… that’s what I’m trying to focus on to stop myself crying!”
⏤ James Anderson ahead of his final Test 💬 pic.twitter.com/JiDV1RE1WK
— The Cricketer (@TheCricketerMag) July 8, 2024
“Big thing for me this week is wanting to play well, bowl well and get a win. So that’s what I am trying to focus on. I am sure that the emotions during the week will change but right now this is what I am trying to focus on to stop myself crying” said the veteran pacer.
England have added two uncapped players while a few senior players have been axed from the squad that played against India earlier this year. Dillon Pennington from Nottinghamshire and Jamie Smith from Surrey are in a 14-man squad for the first two Tests against the West Indies.
Pennington has picked up 29 wickets for Nottinghamshire averaging 23.03 in Division One of the ongoing County Championship. Meanwhile, Jamie Smith is an attacking keeper-batter who has scored 507 runs in the Championship at an average of 50.70. With England axing both Ben Foakes and Jonny Bairstow, Smith is all set to make his debut at Lords.
Tom Hartley, Ollie Robinson, Jack Leach, and Mark Wood while off-spinner Shoaib Bashir retained his place. Meanwhile, ECB Managing Director for England Men’s Cricket, Rob Key has wished the veteran pacer all the luck ahead of his final Test match at Lord’s where he has picked up 119 Test wickets out of his 700.
“He has given everything to the sport since his Test debut in 2003. We all would like to wish him well as he walks out at Lord’s for the last time for England,” said Rob Key on Anderson’s last Test match.
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