James Anderson has enjoyed tremendous success since the age of 35 and he believes Stuart Broad, who turned 35 last summer, can follow suit and continue to take wickets for England at Test level.
James Anderson has backed his longtime bowling partner Stuart Broad to play “another 4-5 years” for England.
Anderson and Broad have played 126 Test matches together, sharing 944 wickets at an average of 26.75, making them England’s all-time Test wicket-takers. They were controversially left out of the recent tour of the West Indies, raising concerns that they might have played their last game for England.
However, the pair were withdrawn this summer and they are expected to lead the attack again when England play New Zealand at Lord’s on 2 June. Anderson is now 39 and Broad 35, they are clearly towards the end of their careers, but Anderson seems to have a lot more in Broad’s tank.
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Anderson has won 160 wickets at 21.62 in 44 Tests since the age of 35, and he believes Broad, his four-year junior, can do the same. Speaking to TalkSport, Anderson said: “I’ve probably spent my best four years in international cricket since I was 35.
“So from his point of view, he’s thinking, ‘Why can’t I have the best years in front of me?’ It’s not that we’re slowing down or losing skills or losing fitness.
“We set ourselves a really high standard and that’s why we’ve been doing what we’ve been doing for the last 15 to 20 years. There’s no reason Stuart can’t continue for another 4 to 5 years.”
Discussing the decision to withdraw Anderson and Broad, Rob Key, England’s new chief cricket chief executive, emphasized that “they will try their best while they are with us”. He said: “I think we will try to get the best out of them.
“If they are part of the best bowling attack, I will keep them on the team and try to win a cricket match for England when they cannot impress as much as possible rather than extend their careers. I think we will try to do our best while they are with us. ”
The other two sailors named in the England Test squad for fitness issues are Joffra Archer, Mark Wood, Chris Oakes, Oli Robinson, Oli Stone, Shakib Mahmud and Matt Fisher.