This generation of English cricket has struck lucky that they have had someone of the longevity of James Anderson but they must learn lessons for the next breed of fast bowler
George Dobell at Headingley29-May-20151:38
Stokes, Wood aggressiveness rubbing off – Anderson
There was something quite apt that James Anderson’s celebrations should come on a day when England’s bowling was so modest.Anderson’s achievement in becoming the first England player to claim 400 Test wickets – achieved in the second over of the day when Martin Guptill edged to slip – underlines his value, his longevity and his skill over many years. He has already entered the top eight wicket-taking seamers in Test history. Given sustained fitness, there may only be two -Courtney Walsh and Glenn McGrath – ahead of him by this time next year. He deserves all the plaudits that will come his way.But if Anderson’s milestone (and New Zealand’s reckless approach) distracts from the increasingly chaotic nature of England’s performance in the field – at one stage they dropped two catches in two balls and three in eight – it should be no surprise. His excellence has been masking problems in the England attack for years.It was, after all, Anderson’s skills that proved “the difference between the sides” (in MS Dhoni’s words) on the tour to India in 2012 when Stuart Broad was dropped. It was Anderson’s skills – and fitness – that proved the difference in the crucial Ashes Test at Trent Bridge in 2013 when his captain was obliged to press him into service for a 13-over spell.His ability to swing the ball both ways – conventionally and using reverse – his ability to increase his pace when required – as he did to win the Grenada Test on a pudding of a pitch – his ability to disguise his intentions until the ball is delivered, his control, his fitness and his resilience, mark him out as an outstanding player. And those who say he is only effective in English conditions? They can’t have been watching in Australia or India or the Caribbean. Or, indeed, in England, where docile pitches have become wearingly familiar.Is he better than Trueman? Or Botham? Or Steyn? It hardly matters. He is as skilful as any of them but, wearied by a schedule that has demanded too much of him, just a little of his brilliance has been dulled. If he has become – if he has to become – just a little more cautious, just a little more careful, it is hardly surprising.Anderson welcomes “kick up the backside” from youth
James Anderson has promised England would “fight fire with fire” in the forthcoming Ashes series.
Anderson admitted his side “didn’t bowl particularly well” after leaving New Zealand 2 for 2, but promised they would continue to take a more aggressive approach throughout the rest of the summer.
And he welcomed the “kick up the backside” given to him by the young players in the England dressing room was helpful to a man who was “almost over the hill.”
“Taking my 400th wicket was a proud moment for me,” Anderson said. “It feels a bit surreal when you see the list on TV of all the guys who have taken 400 wickets in the past. They are guys I’ve watched and admired over the years.
“But we didn’t bowl particularly well after that going at more than four-and-half an over all day. It is not good by our standards. I feel sorry for the captain if he sets a field and you don’t bowl to it.
“We’re trying to be aggressive and attacking with our fields and the lines and lengths we bowl. The players we have in the team – the likes of Mark Wood or Ben Stokes – are naturally attacking cricketers, so guys like that are moving us forward. We’re looking to play the same sort of cricket as New Zealand and Australia and fight fire with fire.
“It is rubbing off on us, I think. It’s good for someone like me who’s almost over the hill to get these guys giving you a kick up the backside. You can’t help but admire the way they play and try and do that as well.”
England’s schedule may reap in the millions, but it tends to break cricketers in body and mind long before their time. If that sounds like hyperbole, consider the statistics. Since the start of 2010, Anderson has bowled more deliveries than anyone else – seamer or spinner – in the world in Test cricket. Tellingly, the next busiest bowler is also an England player. But Stuart Broad has bowled almost 2,500 fewer deliveries. In helpful conditions when his captain needs to capitalise, it is always Anderson who is thrown the ball. And in flat conditions when his captain needs control or a breakthrough, it is again Anderson who is trusted with the job.In the same period, since the start of 2010, no bowler in international cricket has bowled as much as Anderson. When you consider that three of the top four busiest bowlers are from England and Anderson, with almost 2,000 more deliveries than Saeed Ajmal, leads the way by a distance, it is not hard to understand why a bowler once so blessed with pace, now uses it selectively. Given more sensitive handling – ie not a four-man attack and not such a hectic schedule – Graeme Swann might still be bowling for England. How Anderson still manages is little less than a miracle.As England look to life after Anderson – he called himself “almost over the hill” at the close of play – they can learn lessons from his career. Not only should interference in young fast bowlers be kept to a minimum – Anderson, it might be remembered, lost his pace, his swing and then suffered a stress fracture after attempts to change his action – but the next generation of seamers require more careful management. England have been incredibly fortunate with Anderson.Both Broad and Anderson – for all their success – could have been better still had they not been forced into service so often. With England’s relentless schedule – they are in the middle of a run of 17 Tests in little more than nine months – it is essential that the fast bowlers of the future are more carefully managed. The gap between the Christmas and New Year Tests in South Africa, for example, is just two days.Sometimes it appears the penny has dropped and England’s management have understood the problem. So few of this team will be included in the ODI squad named at the end of this Test, not only with a view not just to the 2019 World Cup, but to resting players ahead of the Ashes. With many of those who featured in the ODI in Ireland expected to return, it could well be that the ODI careers of Anderson, Ian Bell and, perhaps, Broad are over.But the inclusion of Mark Wood for this Test is a concern. Wood showed at Lord’s that he had the skills to make a difference in the Ashes, so there was no need to play him again here. He is, after all, a man who has played just 25 first-class games in a first-class career that is in its fifth year. He is explosive but frail, so attempting to get two Tests out of him in less than two weeks was an unnecessary risk that compromised the very explosive qualities that render him so uniquely valuable and attractive. It was no surprise that he looked weary and never came close to replicating the speeds he achieved at Lord’s.Perhaps England were sucked into playing New Zealand’s game for a while, too. While the aggressive cricket on display in this game – this series – is hugely enjoyable, it is not always sensible. England looked flustered at times in the afternoon with Broad, Wood and Moeen Ali conceding 33 boundaries – 29 fours and four sixes – between them in their 39 overs. It appears New Zealand’s batsmen may well find a way to get themselves out if some control is maintained; it is not always necessary to go searching for wickets.There are many exciting developments in England cricket at present. The batting order is dynamic, the enthusiasm is contagious and the potential is huge. But if the young bowlers are not to be ruined, if they are not to be ground under the remorselessness of the schedule, they will need rest and rotation. Anderson won’t always be around to paper over the cracks.
