My future is nobody’s priority at the minute: Anderson
WITH sport taking a hiatus across the United Kingdom, a number of athletes in the twilight of their careers have had much to consider.
Playing international cricket means you are constantly on the go but also looking to peak for periods of high intensity marquee events. For established Test cricketers, this is a constant cycle.
At 37 years of age, England’s James Anderson was adhering to the clichéd mantra of taking each season as it comes. A cracked rib sustained in the first match of 2020 against South Africa saw him miss the final two of the series in January, with sights set on the summer’s six Tests split evenly between West Indies and Pakistan.
Yet with no professional cricket until May 28 and the very real prospect of an entire season without cricket altogether, the question around Anderson is whether this will help or hinder his longevity. The difference between finishing on 584 dismissals or perhaps passing Anil Kumble (619) and becoming Test cricket’s third-highest wicket-taker. Would a summer lost mean a summer gained? For the time being, staying on a steady course while abiding by self-quarantining guidelines.
“It could go one of two ways to be honest,” admits Anderson. “I could train really hard but depending on how my head’s working I could be the size of a house by the time we play cricket again!”
The sense from the player himself was that preparations were going as smoothly as possible. Though he was left out of the Sri Lanka squad for the two-test series that was eventually called off as the coronavirus pandemic swept towards the UK, he was fit enough to go, if required. The injury sustained in that Cape Town Test was fully healed and a full pre-season with his county Lancashire undertaken.
“My bowling was as good as it has been,” he says. “It’s frustrating from that point of view, but there’s not a lot we can do at the moment.”
International cricket is a priority for the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in any window they are able to find for play. And while all hopes are pinned on an unlikely start before June, the issue, as Anderson points out, will be getting competitive match practice in time.
But, truthfully, Anderson is not overly worried about when or where the next game is coming.
At a time when the nation is anxious and fearful of a virus that shows no signs of dying down soon, he is no different.
“I’m not fretting about playing cricket, really,” he says.
“It’s more the uncertainty of everything that’s going on at the minute. It’s quite a scary time for everyone. My family’s health is the first priority and cricket very much secondary to that.
“People are sacrificing a hell of a lot for us to try and keep us healthy.
“I think us sacrificing some of and maybe all of the cricket season and staying inside for a bit, I don’t think that’s a huge sacrifice considering what other people are sacrificing at the moment.”