James Anderson - Once In A Generation Fast Bowler

If there is a bowler, who will be remembered for his swing in International cricket, the first name on that list will be England star bowler James Anderson, who is playing his last international match today against West Indies at the iconic Lords Stadium, in London. Anderson made his international debut against Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground in 2003 and since then, he has been among the list of highest-wicket takers in international cricket.

Despite facing several injuries in international cricket, the star pacer has represented the England Cricket team in 188 Tests, 194 ODIs and 19 T20Is in his cricket journey of 22 long years. However, after impressing everyone with his swing bowling, he remained in and out of the team due to injuries and form till 2007.

But as it’s said, great players know how to stay strong in difficult times and make a comeback which is remembered all over the world! He was dropped from the time due to a slight change in his bowling action by the England team management, which resulted in a loss of his confidence and form. He made a strong comeback with his old action, swinging the ball in both directions and picking wickets in every match. 

One of his best performances came in the 2010 Ashes when he spearheaded the England attack and bowled incredibly well with the Kookaburra ball by taking 24 wickets-thereby exorcising some of the ghosts of his previous visit to Australia in 2006 when he took only five wickets.

But do you know what makes James Anderson different from other fast bowlers is his classical side-on action which generates natural outswing and with the old ball is capable of reverse swinging it. When he is in rhythm, with conditions that suit his style, he is pretty much unplayable and has often produced balls that pitch on middle and leg and hit off-stump, leaving the batsmen bewildered. Meanwhile, with the bat he is quite a handy lower-order batsman and his biggest achievement so far has been going through 54 test innings without a duck - which is a World Record.

Let’s take a look at Jimmy Anderson's records in international cricket:

1. Anderson is England's second-highest wicket-taker in Tests, he achieved this magnificent feat when he took his 326th wicket in the fifth Test against Australia at The Oval in August 2013.
2. He is the second bowler in international cricket to pick 119 wickets on a single ground in Test Cricket.
3. Jimmy Anderson is the third fastest bowler to reach the 700 wickets milestone in the longest format of the game. He achieved this feat in 187 Test Matches.
4. He is the first bowler to take Most wickets taken by a wicketkeeper in Tests (197).

One of the biggest achievements in his international career is he is third highest wicket-taker in the World after legendary Sri Lankan spinner Muralitharan and Late Australian spinner Shane Warne, to pick 989 wickets in 400 matches with a bowling economy of 3.24. His unbelievable records speak that he is a bowler born once in a generation.