James Anderson retired from Test cricket on July 12, 2024, after playing his final Test match against West Indies at Lord's. He finished his Test career after playing 188 Test matches and taking 704 Test wickets.
He is England's highest wicket-taker in Test cricket. Anderson is also the pacer with most Test sides besides being the top wicket-taker for England in international cricket.
After retiring from the game, he is currently playing county cricket with Lancashire and in a recent interview, he said that the fire within him still burns to play the game.
Also Read: England vs India Tests: James Anderson Urges England to Stay Wary of India
I Wasn’t Anywhere Near Retirement In My Head - James Anderson
In terms of longevity, James Anderson's international career has been the longest for any pacer as it spanned nearly 25 years. In a recent interview with The Independent, Anderson spoke about playing the next season with Lancashire and looking back at his decision to retire besides saying so much about the game he absolutely loved playing.
“Cricket has given me a huge amount. I still absolutely love the game, especially the longer format. It’s taught me so much about myself, about my character, the emotions in brings out in me, the ups and downs over four or five days – it gives you feelings that you don’t get in any other walk of life" said Anderson.
Further in the interview, he spoke about the timing of his retirement and spoke about several external factors that might have influenced this decision from him.
“I’m still a bit… Mixed on it. It’s one of those things that was out of my hands. They made the decision to move away from having me in the team. That was pretty gutting at the time. I’d been preparing before my last Test match for the next six, 12, 18 months of Test cricket; I wasn’t anywhere near retirement in my head. I felt I still had that want and hunger to play, to do the hard yards, the training, the skill work" said the former legendary pacer.
He also spoke about his relationship with Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum in his final years as an England player. Anderson thanked them for helping him play his final Test match at Lord's as well.
“If I’d just left the team after that West Indies Test match, it would have been more difficult for me to make sense of everything and deal with the fact that was the end. To stay around the team and still be in the dressing room, still trying to have an impact on Test matches, I think that was good for me. The reaction was above and beyond anything I’d ever expected. That last day against the West Indies: I think it was just an hour or so on that last morning but the ground was full. It was amazing to see a sea of people there.”
Tim Southee Replaces James Anderson For England Against India
Anderson served as the bowling mentor of the England side in Test cricket after his retirement. Citing reasons of commitment with Lancashire in domestic cricket, Anderson will not be available in England's upcoming Test series against India. Tim Southee has replaced him as the fast bowling consultant for the series against India.
Also Read: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli's Grade A+ Contract To Continue After Test, T20I Retirements
