James Anderson is Burnley’s finest!

BURNLEY’S James Anderson inscribed his name in to England’s history books with a record-breaking 529th international wicket in defeat to New Zealand on Sunday.
GOTCHA: James Anderson celebrates South Africas Francois du Plessis wicket during the Fifth NatWest One Day International at Trent Bridge, Nottingham in September 2012.GOTCHA: James Anderson celebrates South Africas Francois du Plessis wicket during the Fifth NatWest One Day International at Trent Bridge, Nottingham in September 2012.
GOTCHA: James Anderson celebrates South Africas Francois du Plessis wicket during the Fifth NatWest One Day International at Trent Bridge, Nottingham in September 2012.

The 30-year-old, nicknamed the “Burnley Express”, became the country’s most potent bowler across all international formats when dismissing BJ Watling with the last ball of his first over to move ahead of knighted cricketer Sir Ian Botham.

However, the milestone did not bring victory in the first of three one-day internationals in Hamilton.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Jonathan Trott (68), Ian Bell (64) and Joe Root (56) laid the foundations for England’s 258 total in stands of 84 and 89 for the second and third wickets.

Anderson, playing for the first time since the Nagpur Test in December after being rested for the intervening limited-overs games, had seemingly enhanced England’s prospects of defending that total with the landmark wicket, but a buccaneering unbeaten 69 from Brendon McCullum partnered by Martin Guptill’s 27 not out gave the Kiwis a three-wicket win with seven balls to spare.

Anderson’s tally comprises 288 Test wickets, 223 in one-dayers and 18 in Twenty20 internationals.

The king of swing bowling, however, is still well behind Sri Lanka’s world record holder Muttiah Muralitharan, who took 1,347 wickets in his international career.