James Anderson eyes potential return to white-ball cricket
The legendary English pacer recently retired from Test cricket
Former pacer James Anderson is eying a potential return to white-ball cricket after calling time on his legendary red-ball cricket last month during the Test series against West Indies.
Anderson retired with 704 wickets in his red-ball cricket and is the only pacer in the history of the game to bag 700 or more wickets in Tests.
However, just a month after his retirement, Anderson has now expressed his desire to participate in The Hundred as the conditions in England are favourable to pacers, especially swing bowlers.
“There’s a bit of intrigue with the shorter formats because I’ve not played any franchise stuff before. Watching The Hundred this year, and seeing the ball swing around, makes me feel like I could do a job there,” said Anderson on the Final Word Cricket Podcast.
“I might be in a bit of denial because I’m well aware. I won’t play for England again but I’ve still not made a decision on my actual cricket career.”
Anderson played his last white-ball match against Afghanistan at Sydney in March 2015 and he has been focusing on red-ball cricket since then.
With his Test career over, the 42-year-old is now contemplating playing T20 cricket.
“Once this summer is done I can sit down and think if I want to play cricket in some shape or form again next year. I’m quite open at the minute to thoughts of any sort of cricket, I’m still fit enough to play and I’m not shutting myself off to anything,” he added.
“It’s hard to know if there’ll be any interest from people wanting me to play in that sort of thing so we’ll wait and see. I know it’s a while since I played it and my age will get brought up again but I really feel I’ll be good enough to play that form of cricket.
“Bowling at the England lads in the nets, you have to have change-ups and slower balls. We constantly work on it, so I don’t think [the skills and variations] will be an issue.
“But I don’t know how much people will want a 42-year-old bowler in their team so we’ll have to wait and see.”
Comments