New Delhi: Former England cricketer David Llyod recently opined on James Anderson’s retirement from international cricket as the star pacer featured in his swansong at the Lord’s where England beat West Indies by an innings and 114 runs. Llyod said that Anderson had been “forced out” of the England national team, reasoning it to his “age”. The legendary pacer got a grand reception at the home of cricket as he donned the whites for one last time for the Three Lions.
The three-match series opener saw Anderson taking the wicket of Jayden Seales in the first innings and he went on to pick up the wickets of Kraigg Brathwaite, Alick Athanaze, and Joshua da Silva to finish with excellent figures of 16-7-32-3 in the second. Llyod, who represented England in nine Tests and eight ODIs, said that Anderson had the potential to continue for longer as he was “bowling as well as ever.”
He’s still taking wickets…: Llyod
“The sad thing about Jimmy Anderson’s departure is that he’s bowling as well as ever. Accuracy, pace, stamina – he’s shown all those qualities and he’s still taking wickets. They say they are moving him on with next year’s Ashes in mind. I say, pick your best team. He was forced out because of his age,” Lloyd wrote in his column for Mail Online.
“In this era of inclusivity, it takes the biscuit that someone has been stopped for that reason. Reader, let me tell you: I know the feeling. Inclusivity, my arse. I can call a cricket match stood on my head, but I don’t seem to be getting much work,” Lloyd added.
Anderson bid farewell to international cricket as the third-highest wicket-taker in Tests after the legendary spin duo of Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne. In a Test career spanning over 188 games, Anderson bagged 704 wickets with 32 four-wicket hauls, 32 five-wicket hauls and 3 10-wicket hauls.
James Anderson called it quits from international cricket as he played his farewell Test at the Lord’s and David Llyod feels that the legendary pacer was forced to retire from the game. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
