England's James Anderson, 41, tinkers with run-up as he looks to bounce back from tough Ashes; seamer returns to England XI for second Test against India - follow game in Vizag with live blog on Sky Sports' digital platforms from 3.30am Friday (4am first ball)
Thursday 1 February 2024 09:43, UK
As a retiring Stuart Broad was being celebrated at the end of the Ashes, his bowling partner James Anderson was being questioned.
During a series in which England's top Test wicket-taker of all time - seam bowling's top Test wicket-taker of all time - mustered just five scalps in four matches at an average north of 85, there was chatter about whether the 41-year-old would be joining Broad in bowing out.
None of that chatter was from the man himself, mind you.
Anderson said during the Ashes finale he had "no interest in going anywhere" before adding later on that Broad's decision to quit had made him "more firm" about prolonging his career.
Now he will get the chance to show that he has still got it - as well as display his new run-up - after being selected in England's side for the second Test against India in Vizag from Friday (first ball 4am UK).
Anderson's pace was not down during The Ashes. His control was there. He was not expensive, going at only 2.77 runs an over.
He would have picked up a greater haul of wickets if not for a number of dropped catches from his team-mates, whose fingers appeared coated in Teflon at times.
The concern was the lack of movement he was able to generate, something that has been his superpower for two decades. It made a man usually so menacing look largely innocuous.
Anderson described the pitch at Edgbaston for the series opener as "kryptonite" after bagging match figures of 1-109 and insisted he was "done in the Ashes" if presented with similar surfaces.
Whether it was the pitches or Anderson's own glitches, his fears of an ineffectual series were realised.
He was largely a bystander as Broad, Chris Woakes and Mark Wood led England's comeback from 2-0 down, with a series draw sealed when Broad dismissed Alex Carey with his final-ever ball.
Anderson has worked tirelessly since that July day to ensure, unlike Broad, he has not bowled his final-ever ball.
Ahead of the India tour, Anderson undertook running drills on a track in the shadows of the Etihad Stadium and plumped for a new run-up, which he hopes can give him a kickstart after his Ashes blues.
"My run-up is the main thing, trying to make sure it is better," he told the Telegraph. "One thing that was not right was my run-up speed.
"I can't rely on that fast twitch snap at the crease that I've had over the years so I've been working on my momentum in my run-up to get speed that way. That feels like it is working really well, the ball is coming out really well and I just need to transfer that outdoors now.
"Something that has worked well for me is mixing up training, making sure it is not doing the same thing over and over.
"I have to work on running technique and speed a bit more than most people now getting to the age I am at. I have to cover every base to make sure when I get to India I am in a good place."
India, perhaps surprisingly for an English fast-medium bowler, has been a happy hunting ground for Anderson. His average of 29.32 from 13 Tests in the country is only three runs higher than his overall career average of 26.42.
Anderson bagged 12 wickets there in 2012, supporting spinners Graeme Swann (20) and Monty Panesar (17), as England won a Test series in India for the first time since 1984/85.
In 2021, he plucked eight wickets in three Tests at an average of 15.87, bowling one of the finest overs in recent memory as England went 1-0 up in the four-match series before being whumped 3-1 as they slumped on spin-friendly wickets amid poor decision-making.
Anderson's two-wicket first over on the final day in Chennai was an absolute peach as he wrecked India with reverse swing: bowling Shubman Gill with his second ball, coming close to pinning Ajinkya Rahane lbw with his fourth, before cleaning up Rahane with his fifth.
Over the course of the series, Anderson's economy rate was a frugal 1.92. Of the 65.5 overs he bowled, 31 of them were maidens.
While the Bazball bowling philosophy is about taking wickets not saving runs, if Anderson can be as stingy in Vizag and ally that with reverse swing, it could be a lethal combination.
Anderson was stingy and found reverse swing in Pakistan in late 2022 as England secured a 3-0 sweep, claiming eight wickets in two Tests at an average of 18.50 and economy rate of 2.20.
Those who fear age has caught up with Anderson will say that excellence in India and Pakistan was in the past.
Those who feel he has more to give will say age has only improved him, with Anderson having picked up 210 wickets in 58 Tests at an average of 22.36 since his 35th birthday.
He added to the Telegraph: "I still feel like I've got a lot to offer this team. I would not still be doing what I'm doing if I didn't feel like that. I still feel like I have got the skills to win England games of cricket so I don't see why I should finish just because of my age.
"Age is just a number. People will always look at my age when it comes up on the screen but for me it is irrelevant. It is how you feel as a cricketer and I know I can still dive around in the field and put a shift in with the ball just like I have done for the last 20 years.
"I feel the last five or six years have been the best of my career. Although the Ashes did not go as I wanted, there have been many series when I have not bowled well and it is just a case of putting in the hard work to make sure it doesn't happen again."
That hard work has taken place: the run-up, the running, the ravenous appetite to keep going.
Anderson, his team-mates and England fans will hope it pays off in India, to either ensure a fitting finale to a fantastic career or so that he shows once again there is plenty of life left in him yet.
Follow over-by-over text commentary from the second Test between India and England, in Vizag, live on skysports.com and the Sky Sports App from 3.30am on Friday (first ball at 4am).
England XI for second Test against India: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (captain), Ben Foakes (wicketkeeper), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir, James Anderson.
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