James Anderson turned England into one of the best spells of his prestigious career to give England a resounding 227-run victory against India, then nonchalantly claimed that his reverse-swing masterclass was nothing “out of the ordinary”.
With England chasing a ninth five-day wicket to secure the first Test in Chennai, Anderson was heartbroken by the Indian line-up in a three-wicket five-over stint for just six runs.
James Anderson's first over of the day 🤯
— ICC (@ICC) February 9, 2021
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0#INDvENG ➡️ https://t.co/gnj5x4GOos pic.twitter.com/fb2L9m5OrF
Jack Leach made his way to a four-figure mark for 76 but Anderson rejected the traditional argument around the role of the Seamers at the conclusion of matches in the subcontinent as he received a wear ball to disguise in a devastating fashion. ‘He’s just getting better’
'He just keeps on getting better'
— Channel 4 Sport (@C4Sport) February 9, 2021
Ohhh Jimmy Jimmy.
Two former team-mates, Sir Alastair Cook and Sir Andrew Strauss, wax lyrical about @jimmy9 after his match winning spell on Day Five. #channel4cricket #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/US3ditX4fG
Their first day would go down as a shining example of Kala, sending off off-stumping Shubman Gill and Ajinkya Rahane twice in four balls to return to the pavilion.
Rahane was lucky to avoid shouting an lbw a few seconds ago and top scorer Rishabh Pant in the first innings was later beaten by a cutter from the back of the wicket, the 38-year-old with his considerable arsenal of bicycles.
His efforts delighted England fans and his captain, Joe Root, reiterated last summer’s return to say Anderson was the goat (the greatest of all time). ‘
After 158 Tests and 611 wickets, Anderson was happy to leave the exaggeration to others.
“Of all the plans we had, nothing was common,” he said.