Anderson flies out to lift England
JIMMY ANDERSON will join England’s cricketers in India on Monday after recovering from a shoulder problem sooner than expected. England’s record-breaking opening bowler could even play in the second Test, starting a week on Thursday. Anderson had three days of fitness tests in Loughborough after a recurrence of the problem that kept him out of last summer’s first Test against Pakistan. The 34-year-old was originally told he would have to play for the Lions in the UAE against Pakistan at the start of December, before going on to India. But last night he was cleared to join England ahead of the five-Test series that starts in Rajkot on Wednesday.
JIMMY ANDERSON will fly to India on Monday to boost England’s Test squad after being told last night that he has fully recovered from injury.
England’s record wicket-taker has undergone three days of fitness tests in Loughborough after suffering a recurrence of the shoulder problem that kept him out of the first Test against Pakistan last summer.
And last night he was told he has passed England’s rigorous examination of his condition and given permission to skip the original plan of proving thatt he deserves to be part of England’s party for fivee Tests in India.
Now he will join England in Rajkot ahead of the start of the first Test on Wednesday and will hope to prove his readiness for the second Test in Visakhapatnam thatt begins on November 17,7, hot on the heels of the first match.
England were arguably over-cautious in insisting their best ever bowler must prove his fitness to join the 16-man party, who will attempt to overcome the odds against an India team ranked No 1 in the world.
But the selectors relented last night after Anderson spent three days bowling in the indoor nets at Loughborough under the watchful eye of ECB physio Ben Langley to a plan devised by lead bowling coach Kevin Shine.
Anderson was originally told he would have to play for the Lions in the United Arab Emirates against Pakistan at the start of December before he was cleared to travel to India, missing at least the first two Tests. He offered to play in Indian club cricket to prove his fitness but that was vetoed by England’s security supremo Reg Dickason, because he was concerned about one of the players being away from the squad.
At least now Anderson will have a chance of playing in the second Test, and certainly the third, as long as he proves he has recovered from the fractured shoulder blade that proved such a setback to England last summer. SportsmailSports revealed this week that England had abaabandoned the plan ththat proved flawed in Bangladesh of fielding three spinners, aand had instead reverted to the idea of playing to their sstrengths in selectining four seamers. AAnd Anderson’s retreturn comes just 24 hourhours after Sportsmail called ffor him to be added to the England squad in the hope of strengthening a team that was upset by Bangladesh’s convincing victory in the second Test in Dhaka.
A fit and firing Anderson, at 34, is crucial to those England plans and his arrival in India on Monday will be a huge boost to captain Alastair Cook, who has wanted his great friend to join the Test squad as soon as possible.
England will still have to go into the first Test without their spearhead, but his arrival will give them a huge boost and Anderson is adamant he will be fit for purpose as soon as he arrives in India.
That can only be a major plus for a side who will begin the series as big underdogs.