James Anderson’s career reached new heights after he registered 700 Test wickets on Saturday morning. He also became the first seamer to claim 700 test wickets. Anderson achieved this unique feat against India in Dharamsala.
He achieved the glorious feat in the fourth over of the fifth Test on day three when he took Kuldeep’s wicket to bowl India for 477, a first-innings deficit of 259. He is the third bowler in a Test format to reach 700 Test wickets with only spinners Muthiah Muralidaran (800) and Shane Warne (708) ahead of him in the all-time list.
No specialist bowler has played more Tests than Anderson who is playing his 187th match of Test career. He began his Test career against Zimbabwe at Lord’s in May 2003, nearly 21 years ago. Anderson began Dharamsala Test at 698 wickets & moved to 699 shortly after lunch on day two when he bowled Shubman Gill through the gate for 110.
Anderson’s former teammate, Alastair Cook who is serving as a studio pundit for TNT Sports, paid tribute to his skill and longevity.
“It is a superb achievement,” Cook said, having captained Anderson in 49 of his Test appearances. “His hunger to get better and win games of cricket for England is unbelievable. The physical challenges he has overcome to be able to play nearly 190 Test matches is a joke and his skill is a joke.”
James Anderson’s Journey to 700 Test Wickets
Anderson is 100 wickets ahead of another seam bowler in Test cricket, Stuart Broad who has retired at the end of last summer’s Ashes with 604 test wickets on their name. At the Oval in 2018, Anderson overtook McGrath’s previous record of 563 wickets for a Tets seamer when he dismissed Mohammed Shami with the final ball of that match. He went on to pass 600 wickets with the wicket of Pakistan’s Azhar Ali at Southampton in 2020.
Coming to Anderson’s life-changing moment, he scripted history by scalping the wicket of Anderson which also marked Anderson’s 149th wicket against India. It is the most he has claimed against any Test opponent. Of those, 44 have now come in 17 Tests in India, at an average of 30.27. In all, he has claimed 434 of his 700 wickets on home soil, and 266 overseas, including 92 in Asia, at 27.51.
His first Test wicket was of Zimbabwe’s Mark Vermuelen which came in Lord’s in May 2003. Since then his notable wickets have been of South Africa’s Jacques Kallis (100th), Australia’s Peter Siddle (200th), New Zealanders Peter Fulton and Martin Guptill (300th and 400th respectively), and West Indies’ Kraigg Brathwaite (500th).
Sahin Tendulkar praised James Anderson
Sachin Tendulkar heaped praise on James Anderson for achieving the remarkable feat of 700 Test wickets. Tendulkar applauded Anderson’s achievement by calling it simply magnificent. He further said that when he first saw Anderson in 2002 he was amazed by his control over the ball.
Anderson’s parents were present in the stadium when Anderson added one more accolade to his kitty by scalping his 700th Test wicket. For the unversed, his father has also watched Anderson claim his first Test wicket & now he was also watching Anderson scalp his 700th Test wicket which is truly a moment to behold.
Coming to the fixture, England bowled India for 477 in their first innings. Shoaib Bashir wreaked havoc with a fiver fer. However, England is not having a good time in the ongoing Test match as they are reeling at 183-8 within 44 overs & are starring at an innings defeat.
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