The veteran English pacer, James Anderson on Monday surpassed the tally of 650th Test wicket as England reduced visitors New Zealand to 27-1 in their second innings at lunch in the ongoing second Test. The seasoned paceman reached the massive landmark after New Zealand opener Tom Latham left a straight ball that crashed into his stumps. The 39-year-old bowler is now just the third cricketer to achieve the milestone after spin legends Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan.
Among pacers, Anderson leads the panel, followed by Glenn McGrath, who has 563 wickets to his name in the red-ball format. In the overall list, Anderson is placed fourth while former India spinner Anil Kumble occupies the fourth position with 619 plucks in the longest format.
Most Test wickets by a pacer in Test cricket:
- 650 – James Anderson
- 563 – Glenn McGrath
- 543 – Stuart Broad
- 519 – Courtney Walsh
- 439 – Dale Steyn
- 434 – Kapil Dev
Here is the video of the dismissal:
The perfect start and Test wicket number 6️⃣5️⃣0️⃣ for @jimmy9 🙌
Scorecard & Videos: https://t.co/GJPwJC59J7
🏴 #ENGvNZ 🇳🇿 pic.twitter.com/PLFNZU6P2k
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 13, 2022
Anderson entered the record books just months after his international career was in doubt after being dropped by England for the Test series against West Indies. The seamer was restored after Ben Stokes took over the mantle of Test captaincy from Joe Root.
Coming to the match, England was bowled out for 539. Joe Root (176) and Ollie Pope (145) and Ben Foakes (56) were the stars for their side. The hosts resumed on 473-5 and Joe Root started aggressively, hitting a six from a reverse-scoop against Trent Boult. The in-form batter added 13 runs to his overnight score before perishing on 176.
Daryl Mitchell took a diving one-handed catch at slip to remove Stuart Broad (9) and Ben Foakes was then run out for 56 following a mix-up with Matthew Potts. For New Zealand, Boult (5-106) completed his five-fer by bowling Matthew Potts through the gate. Anderson (9) was the last man out, stumped off Michael Bracewell, who returned 3/62 in his first Test.
Earlier, England won the toss and elected to field first. In the first innings of the match, New Zealand ended at 553/10. The Kiwi camp is looking to win the match after losing the first Test at Lord’s by five wickets.
