In Test cricket, James Anderson is a big name. While serving English cricket over a long period of time, Anderson has come to an end in his glorious career. He announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. He will bid final goodbye by playing the last Test mat ch at Lords in this week. Ex-England captain Sir Andrew Strauss believes James Anderson will soon receive a knighthood for his cricket achievements.
Anderson’s Greatness and Strauss’ Support to Receive ‘Knighthood’:
James Anderson, who debuted in 2003, has taken 700 wickets in 187 Test matches, ranking third all-time. He trails behind spinners Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne. Despite his age, Anderson prepared for his 188th and final Test against the West Indies at Lord’s with a seven-wicket performance for Lancashire recently. His 700 Test wickets are unmatched by any non-spinner, marking him as Test cricket’s most prolific pace bowler with a career average of 26.52.
Sir Andrew Strauss, who himself was knighted in 2019 for his charitable work and contributions to cricket, has suggested that James Anderson could soon receive a knighthood. Strauss believes Anderson deserves the honor, echoing sentiments within English cricket that view Anderson’s achievements as worthy of the prestigious title.
While talking about this, Strauss said, “Very much so! I think any fast bowler that plays 188 Test matches deserves a knighthood, I’ll put it that way.”
On His Previous Move:
Strauss, acting as interim director of cricket after Ashley Giles left, initially left out Anderson and Stuart Broad following a tough Ashes series. However, Ben Stokes, the new Test captain, quickly reinstated them for the upcoming home matches, overturning their temporary omission.
He said, “Jimmy’s still bowling well, as we saw from his performances at Lancashire [for whom he took 7 for 35 last week] but there’s a ticking clock there for the next Ashes, isn’t there? I think 18 games until the next Ashes. And at some stage you’ve got to juggle the needs for the future with the needs for the present. So I can understand why they’ve chosen this as the right time to do that.”
Later he said, “One thing we know for sure is that to win in Australia, or to win any test match or any Test series, it all comes down to the quality and variety of your bowling attack. And so, to me, the next Ashes is too far away for Jimmy.”
Lastly, he added, “People have written him off many times, including probably myself, but that does feel too far down the road. And so at some stage you have got to start planning for that.”
On #RedForRuth campaign:
Strauss plans to attend Anderson’s farewell at Lord’s, where the second day will feature the #RedForRuth campaign in its sixth year. The initiative supports the Ruth Strauss Foundation, founded in memory of Strauss’ wife, helping families affected by a parent’s cancer death and funding research on non-smoking lung cancers.
While talking about this, Strauss said, “Most of what I’ve done in my career, achievement-wise, has been about me but this isn’t. This is about a need that we can help fill and I feel very proud we are carrying out Ruth’s wishes to a certain degree. But our work is only just beginning, really.”
Lastly, he added, “We would struggle to do what we do without this ‘Red for Ruth’ Test match and we are incredibly grateful to the ECB, to Lord’s and to the cricket community for continuing to support us.”
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