Image Courtesy- ESPNcricinfo.com
England fast pacer James Anderson is known as one of the best Swing ballers, with his talent he can move the ball both ways with minimum changes in wrist and seam position. Though, it was never an easy task for the fast bowler, as ‘Swing King’ revealed that it took him close to five years to master the art of inswing.
Struggling in the early part of his career with inswingers, he kept it hidden for a long time to master the art.
“The inswinger took probably the best part of five years to get to where I felt confident to bowl it in a Test match. It took so much practice to get that right. Certainly, in the early part of my career, I had some quite intimidating captains! And I didn’t want to let them down by bowling a bad inswinger down the legside, so I kept it hidden for a long time,” Anderson revealed in a chat on Sky Sports with former skipper Nasser Hussain.
Tomorrow our leading Test wicket-taker…
Becomes our most capped Test cricketer…@jimmy9 ❤️ pic.twitter.com/AlLTI42N3S
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 9, 2021
The English fast pacer has now mastered the art of swing bowling and is easily trying out multiple variations on the field.
“Fortunately now, having put that work in, I really enjoy playing around with my skills when I’m out in the middle.” – Anderson said
18 years. 616 wickets. 162 Tests.
Your skill, desire and sacrifice continues to amaze us all.
Our most capped Test cricketer ever. Congrats @Jimmy9 👏 pic.twitter.com/E8cN5MUwDW
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 10, 2021
James Anderson passes the record of former England captain Alastair Cook to become the English player with the most played matches in Test cricket. The fast bowler is currently playing against New Zealand at Edgbaston.