Anderson: There's always a lot of noise when you suffer a defeat
England’s premier pacer James Anderson has contested Michael Vaughan’s opinion that either of Anderson or Broad should be dropped to shake up the English team. Anderson believes that he knows what is expected out of him and that there is always a lot of noise when you suffer a defeat.
A decade ago, when Vaughan had benched Matthew Hoggard and Steve Harmison – both of whom had performed exceeding well in the 2005 Ashes – for the 2nd Test against New Zealand in Wellington, it was Broad and Anderson who benefited from the proposition. Now, 10 years later, the tables seem to have turned.
Please read the whole article & not just the headline .... https://t.co/hQHMeTY5jl. @telecricket ....
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) May 29, 2018
After England’s bland performance against Pakistan in the Lord’s Test, Vaughan suggested in a column for The Telegraph that either of Broad or Anderson should be dropped from the side to shake up Root’s lackluster team.
In reply, Anderson has expressed his disagreement: "It wasn't our best performance last week and when that happens - when you suffer a heavy defeat - there's always a lot of noise. Lots more opinions come out. This has to be done, that has to be done. There's not a lot as players we can do about that.
"We've 950 Test wickets between us. We're doing the best we can for this team. I know we've been on a really bad run of form this winter and the first Test here and I think in these situations you need players to stand up and put in match-winning performances. I think we have a lot of quality in the dressing room - not just me and Stuart - and there's lots of players can stick their hand up and put in match-winning performances. That's all we can focus on. We'll try to block out the noise from whoever is shouting out."
The England bowlers were widely criticized for not bowling the right lengths in the Lord’s Test. Especially Anderson was in the eye of the storm for not attacking the stumps enough. The pacer has now reacted, saying that after 15 years of playing Test cricket he knows what he is supposed to do.
Anderson said, "I'd like to think that part of the skill of being a bowler is knowing what length on certain wickets you need to bowl. I didn't have my best game, I know that. But I'm aware of what lengths that need to be bowled on certain pitches. Some people think they might know better than me but I'd like to think that, after 15 years of playing Test cricket, I know which lengths to bowl on certain pitches.
England v Pakistan: James Anderson says team must show 'fight' https://t.co/m5JOhRspTC
— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) May 30, 2018
"As well as taking in the conditions, you've got to take in the batsmen as well. It's about working the game out. About game management. It's not as simple as saying 'we've got to bowl fuller' and just chucking it up there and get smashed everywhere and hope they edge one. There's more to Test cricket. You've got to be patient. I've always looked at it as almost a game of chess. You've got to out manoeuvre the batsman. You've got to lure him into a false sense of security if you can. For me, it's more than just trying to throw it up there and nick one."
"We're trying to figure out what's going wrong. The three days before the last game was some of the best practice we've had. A real high intensity and good quality. As players, all we can do is try and deliver out on the field and we've not been doing that as a team. That's pretty much all we can focus on.”
© Cricket World