James Anderson extends tenure as England's bowling consultant
James Anderson, the former fast bowler and only pacer with 700-plus Test wickets, has extended his stint as the bowling consultant for the England cricket team. This extension will cover the upcoming tours of Pakistan and New Zealand later this year. Anderson transitioned into this role following his retirement from international cricket after a match against West Indies at Lord's earlier this year.
Anderson's future plans and coaching aspirations
Anderson discussed his contract extension ahead of England's third and final Test against Sri Lanka at the Kennington Oval in London. He told Sky Sports, "At the minute, I'm due to go to Pakistan and New Zealand in the winter. Then nothing concrete after that." He further added, "I'm very new to this, I'm still learning as we go."
Anderson's impact on England's bowling lineup
Following Anderson's retirement, Josh Hull and Gus Atkinson have stepped up in the England team. Atkinson made his debut in Anderson's farewell Test and has already achieved three five-wicket hauls at Lord's. Hull debuted against Sri Lanka in the third Test, joining a pace attack that includes Atkinson, Olly Stone, and the experienced Chris Woakes.
Anderson's potential involvement with limited-overs setup
With no Test cricket scheduled for the first five months of 2025, Anderson may get a chance to work with the limited-overs setup. This opportunity could arise when head coach Brendon McCullum takes over the white-ball teams from next year. Despite not playing any white-ball cricket since 2019 and his last T20 appearance being over a decade ago, Anderson expressed interest in joining the franchise circuit.
Here are his Test numbers
Anderson is the only seamer with 700-plus wickets in Test cricket (704). Overall, only Muthiah Muralidaran (800) and Shane Warne (708) own more Test scalps than Anderson. Anderson has the sixth-most five-wicket hauls in the history of Test cricket (32). His tally also includes three 10-wicket match hauls. The pacer retired with 188 Test appearances, the second-most for a player after Sachin Tendulkar (200).
