Consistency is key: The defining feature of James Anderson’s legacy
James Anderson’s reputation precedes him. Even to the most casual cricket fan, the understated, slim-cut fast bowler from Burnley isregarded as the greatest fast bowler of all time.
While hard to argue with such a conclusion, its reasoning differs greatly from person to person. Some regale in his ability to bamboozle batters by swinging the ball both ways, others for his ability to concede no runs while charging in, but take a look at the statistics, and there is a different, far more impressive justification for the legacy he now possesses.
Assessing the number of Test wickets James Anderson has taken over time reveals his true pedigree; a rarefied cocktail of skill, resilience, and adaptability has seen him excel at his craft for a generation. Especially impressive given fast bowling is the most strenuous discipline of them all within cricket.
Having made his debut on hallowed turf, at Lord’s against Zimbabwe in 2003, Anderson revealed his immense potential. Even if the numbers are modest at best, these layed the foundations from what would become his world-beating bowling career.
26 wickets in his debut international year, followed by two years confined to the periphery of the Test team due to poor form, saw Anderson make a slow but assured start to his career. Leaving his early year blues behind, he made himself an indispensable selection for the national squad in 2008: 46 wickets saw Anderson consolidate his position as one of the premier weapons in a England team’s burgeoning bowling arsenal.
The period from 2008 to 2011 saw Anderson’s already sought-after stocks rise even higher. A career high 57 wickets in 2010 demonstrated his ability to dominate some of the most formidable batting lineups in the world, even if his consistency was still somewhat lacking.
Those fears, however, were soon put to rest after Anderson’s performances between 2012 to 2015, the consistency of which represent Anderson at his very best, the zenith of a career that is set to go down into the cricket history books. The data shows Anderson’s remarkable consistency, the Lancashire bowler averaged 46.5 per year in those four years alone.
Advancing age and a wearing body proved no trouble for Anderson who, as the cliché goes, seems to be maturing like a fine wine. Where other bowlers have slowed, Anderson continues to match the very best in the world. In every year in the decade between 2008 until 2018, Anderson took more than 40 wickets in Test cricket. An injury-ridden 2019, with the two subsequent international seasons impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, saw Anderson’s wicket-haul fall to their lowest levels since 2006.
The 2022 season saw Anderson snaffle 36 wickets, and yet expectations remain high as he enters his twentieth year of Test cricket. With an Ashes summer just around the corner, and with the Anderson showing no signs of slowing down, the sporting majority may well regale in his ability to dismiss Australians once more.
But, as these statistics prove, one of the finest bowlers the game with 675 Test wickets to his name – the third most in cricket history – it is his prolific consistency over two decades at the highest level that we should applaud.
