'I definitely questioned it' - James Anderson considered retirement after West Indies snub

A heartbroken James Anderson considered retirement after being left out of England’s Test tour of West Indies earlier this year. The veteran pacer made the massive revelation in a recent interaction. Post England’s 0-4 debacle in the Ashes, the selectors controversially omitted Anderson and his long-time partner-in-crime Stuart Broad for West Indies Tests. The two talismanic fast bowlers were disappointed with their ouster and the same was evident in their interviews.

Notably, new Test skipper Ben Stokes has publicly stated that he wants both Anderson and Broad in the line-up if the duo is available. Hence, both pacers are likely to feature in England’s three-match Test series against New Zealand at home, starting from June 2. Meanwhile, Anderson stated that he contemplated retirement after the snub but eventually decided to continue playing.

I asked myself, do I want to carry on?: James Anderson

“I definitely questioned it. I asked myself, ‘do I want to carry on?’ And you do start questioning other things when something like that happens. Is it something that I’ve done around the group?,” he told reporters at an event in Leicester.

“I think the longer time went on the more I just wanted to play,” he added. “I talked it through with my family and they saw it as I did … I’ve still got more to give the game whether it is Lancashire or England,” he added. With 640 wickets in the kitty, Anderson is the most successful Test pacer and third-most successful overall. As he’s aging like fine wine, only time would tell how far this tally will go.

Meanwhile, Anderson also made it crystal clear that there’s no bad blood between him and former Test skipper Joe Root. “I spoke to him before he announced that he was stepping down. So there’s still a huge amount of respect between the two of us, and there’s no animosity,” he added. Meanwhile, the series against New Zealand will also mark Brendon McCullum’s maiden assignment as England’s Test coach and Anderson is excited.

“It’s really exciting. He always wants the aggressive option. I’m sure he’ll bring that from his coaching point of view as well. With him and Ben, we’re never going to take a backward step,” stated Anderson.