Kraigg Brathwaite and Shai Hope of the Windies. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)
England emerged victorious against West Indies in the first Test at Lord’s on July 12. But the Test and especially Day 3 belonged to the departing James Anderson. Anderson is one of the finest bowlers England have ever produced and it is fitting that the pacer is the third-highest wicket-taker in Tests. As the visitors were on the cusp of defeat, it all boiled down to the last wicket as Gudakesh Motie and Jayden Seales kept denying Anderson his farewell wicket.
Though Anderson could not fetch the final wicket, he made sure he plucked three wickets in the first innings and a wicket in the second as England won the Test with an innings and 114 runs. Kraigg Brathwaite, who showed optimism of winning the first Test against England, stressed that the team is willing to introspect and keep believing in their skills and aims to come harder in the remaining two Tests.
Also Read: Playing for England is the best job in the world: James Anderson
“For me to the boys [the message] is generally: things will not always go as planned. Also, we came to win the Test and it didn’t happen. But [there are] still two Tests remaining in this series and we still have six Tests remaining for the year. So it’s all a build-up. We can’t believe that because of this [England] win, we are out of it or anything. We got to dig deep, we got to keep believing and keep stressing on it. It’s easy to give up. It’s easy to say, ‘well, I can’t get it done’, but we got to keep believing and keep supporting one another,” Brathwaite was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
Anderson finishes international career on high
Talking about James Anderson, the 41-year-old has defied all odds and has pulled off an impossible task for a fast bowler to have the kind of mileage he had in his career. His fitness has been applauded by both the avid game lovers and cricket experts.
Notably, Anderson was one of the very few cricketers who opted out of white-ball cricket and dedicated most of their careers to Tests. He finished with 704 wickets in 188 games at an average of 26.45.