England pace bowler James Anderson has claimed that captain Ben Stokes offered him the chance to finish the run chase against India in the rescheduled fifth and final Test. The hosts registered their highest-ever run-chase of 378 at Edgbaston, Birmingham to draw the series 2-2 on July 7 as well.
Meanwhile, Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow added a historic 269-run partnership for the fourth wicket, scoring their respective centuries in the process as well. However, England wanted the duo to carry on with an aggressive approach to finish the game and Ben Stokes suggested moving Stuart Broad up the order once again as well.
Sharing the plans in the dressing room regarding the batting order, the veteran pace bowler said on the Tailenders podcast: “Because there was a new ball coming up, they thought, ‘Let’s try and finish it before the new ball. So if we lose a wicket, we’ll send Broady in and he can literally just try and hit every ball for six’. Between 67 and 75 overs or something like that. So then the deeper we got – I think it was about 20 runs left – Broady was like, ‘Right, that’s me done, someone else can can go in next’.”
READ HERE: Gary Kirsten all set to work with Hardik Pandya
James Anderson further added, “So then Stokesy comes up to me and said, ‘You’ve never hit the winning runs. So if we need four to win, and [Ravindra] Jadeja’s bowling for example, do you fancy going in and hitting the winning runs? I just felt really uncomfortable with it. I thought it was a little bit too piss-takey. So I was like, ‘I’m not sure I’m comfortable with that’.”
However, England eventually finished the run chase without any more difficulties on the final day. Root and Bairstow helped the side cross the line in 76.4 overs, denying Team India the opportunity to attack again as well.
READ HERE: India will struggle if Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma don’t score, says Mohammad Hafeez
“Stuart Broad had decided he wasn’t going in, so he took his pads off. Sam Billings didn’t have his pads on. I wouldn’t put my pads on. And Ben Stokes also didn’t put his pads on. So we had no one padded up for the last 20 runs of that game. That’s how relaxed everyone was,” James Anderson concluded.
