James Anderson has undoubtedly been England’s greatest test bowler, and the swing sensation has time and again been the architect behind England success in test cricket. Anderson, who no longer plays in the shorter forms of the game, has set up some clear ambitions for himself.
The Lancashire pacer in a recent interview admitted that he was eager to play till the 2019 Ashes. Anderson, who has been enjoying a great run of form since the last couple of years, has shown absolutely no signs of fading away. With Anderson not needed to turn up for England in the limited overs, he can indeed carry on till 2019 as his fitness has simply been top notch.
In his interaction with The Telegraph, Anderson said that his goal was to get to the 500 wickets mark. “In the back of my mind I think I can get 500 Test wickets,” Anderson told The Telegraph UK. “And what has helped me during the last three or four years has been thinking about staying as fit as possible so I get on the field. “Then I can contribute to us winning games. If I do that and stay in the team it means I will get wickets. “I would like to play the 2019 Ashes. I will be 37 then,” Anderson said.
Anderson though, didn’t have an ideal outing in South Africa as his average was on the higher side in that particular series. Justifying that, Anderson said, “You get to a certain age and people start saying, ‘Oh is he losing his pace?’ Where I am at the minute is I feel as fit as I have ever been.” “I feel I can still get it down the other end. I guess it is an extra incentive to keep going, to prove people wrong. “You spend all your career trying to prove people wrong. It is the same now.”
“The game has been amazing to me. So I want to stay but whether that is coaching full-time I am not sure,” he said. “It is a full-time job on the road travelling away from your family if you do at international level. “Mentoring sounds more feasible. Dipping in and out trying to pass things on. “I worked for Sky Sports during the World Twenty20. That was a great opportunity to try it,” Anderson added.