"Rare to see a piece of history....": ECB chairperson on James Anderson' 700 Test wickets
Mar 12, 2024
London [UK], March 12 : England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chairperson Richard Thomson lauded 41-year-old pacer James Anderson for completing 700 wickets in Test cricket and becoming the first pacer to do so, saying that this particular milestone will never be touched by any other pacer again.
England's ageless pace wonder recently completed 700 Test wickets during the series against India which concluded recently. The veteran picked up 10 wickets across four matches in the series.
In a video posted by ECB, Thomson said that it is very rare to witness a piece of history play out which will stay unbroken. He also lauded Anderson for leaving an "extraordinary" legacy behind him as a pacer who is still going strong after 22 years.
"It is very rare to see a piece of history play out that you know is never going to happen again. Then obviously, it is James Michael Anderson over here. It's a shame that your dad is not here because being with your dad when you did that was remarkable," Thomson said.
https://twitter.com/englandcricket/status/1767468147743871359
"Most records in sport are there to be broken. This is one that I do not think will ever be broken. All of you, playing at the highest level, there is nothing more that we can do than want to play for the country. That in itself is the pinnacle. But to leave a legacy is even more important. And that is what Jimmy Anderson has done. A legacy that is extraordinary over 21 years. To realise that everyone just beneath Jimmy has retired, so there's no way this record is ever going to be beaten," he added.
Following the presentation, Anderson thanked the ECB chair on his Instagram story. 
Anderson, who made his Test debut for England back in 2002, now has 700 wickets in 187 Test matches. These have come at an average of 26.52 and a strike rate of 56.9, with 32 five-wicket hauls and three ten-wicket hauls to his name. His best bowling figures in an inning are 7/42.
He is England's highest wicket-taking bowler in Tests. Overall, in international cricket, he is behind Sri Lanka's spin legend Muttiah Muralitharan (800 wickets in 133 matches) and the late Australian spin great Shane Warne (708 wickets in 145 matches).
Coming to the series result, India secured a 4-1 series win, bouncing back after a loss in the first Test to secure the whole thing. India won the final Test in Dharamsala by an innings and 64 runs.
