With the snow-capped Dhauladhar mountain ranges providing a stunning backdrop here, James Anderson, 41, scaled ‘Mount 700’ to permanently etch his name among the greats of the game.
Precisely 15 minutes into the third day’s play on Saturday, the dismissal of Kuldeep Yadav signalled the end of Anderson’s wait. The ball kissed the outside edge of Kuldeep’s bat and wicketkeeper Ben Foakes completed the dismissal. This was the moment of the day for Anderson, England and their supporters.
On his debut against Zimbabwe in May 2003, Anderson began his wicket-tally by bowling Mark Vermeulen at Lord’s and gradually became the most reliable new-ball weapon in the English armoury.
Third to reach the mark
Playing his 187th Test, Anderson became only the third bowler — following spinners Muttiah Muralitharan (800) and Shane Warne (708) — to take 700 Test wickets.
Since surpassing Australian Glenn McGrath’s career-tally of 563 wickets when he dismissed Mohammad Shami at The Oval in September 2018, Anderson remains the highest Test wicket-taker among fast bowlers.
The main reason for Anderson’s longevity in Tests is his decision to stay focused on red-ball cricket.
He played the last of his 194 ODIs against Afghanistan in March 2015 and finished with 269 wickets.
In fact, his T20 career lasted just 19 matches for 18 wickets and ended in 2009. In Test cricket, Anderson has three 10-wicket match-hauls and 32 five-wicket performances.
These numbers could change since Anderson is not done yet.
