Veteran Australian right-arm off-spinner Nathan Lyon has said that it was a bit weird for him to cheer on legendary England pace bowler James Anderson due to the fierce rivalry between England and Australia over the years. However, Lyon and Anderson are playing together for Lancashire in the County Championship. Anderson began his preparation before his final Test for England in some style as he claimed sensational figures of 7/35 for Lancashire against Nottinghamshire as well.

Speaking to the Lancashire website after the end of play on Day 3, Nathan Lyon said about James Anderson: “I’ve obviously seen it on the other side. We had a little moment when we said it feels a bit sick for me to say “come on Jimmy” and him saying “nice Garry”. That was a bit different but it’s the beauty of county cricket I guess and it’s pretty special to play with arguably the greatest bowler to ever play the game.”

However, Nathan Lyon also accepted that the opportunity to play alongside James Anderson was one of the main reasons why he was attracted to playing for Lancashire as well. Meanwhile, Nathan Lyon has been pretty vocal about expressing his surprise over England moving on from James Anderson after the first Test against West Indies at Lord’s later this month as well. He also added that Anderson still has a lot
to offer as well.

“He (Anderson) showed his class. No disrespect to the other bowlers in this game but you can see the class of Jimmy and the extra zip he gets off the wicket. I’ve said this before, I’m very much surprised that England have tapped him on the shoulder. He’s class, he’s world-class. He’s probably the best to ever play the game as a fast bowler and his skillset, especially in England, is remarkable,’” Nathan Lyon concluded.