Stopped trying to make sense of my omission from England squad for West Indies series, says James Anderson

04/13/2022

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James Anderson has said that he has stopped trying to make sense of the decision to drop him from the Test squad for the series against West Indies. Anderson also added that he will be trying to focus on bowling as well as he can and keep squad selection aside as it is out of his control.

Anderson is considered to be one of the greatest fast bowlers of this generation and over his career, he has picked 640 wickets from 169 games which places him third on the list of highest Test wicket takers. The pacer is known for his fitness as he holds the record of playing the most number of Tests by a pacer. However, England selectors decided to drop Anderson, and his compatriot Stuart Broad, for the recent series against West Indies.

England tweaked their lineup for the series against West Indies after losing the Ashes by a scoreline of 0-4. Anderson has stated that he has stopped trying to make sense of the decision as it was completely out of his control.

"Absolutely not. I've stopped trying to make sense of it and just put it to one side. It was completely out of my control. I've got to focus on what I can control and that is bowling as well as I possibly can. It feels a bit strange at the minute. I'm still centrally contracted but I've not had too much feedback from them because a lot is up in the air in terms of director of cricket and head coach," ESPNcricinfo quoted Anderson saying.

"I have just been working with Glenn [Chapple, Lancashire's head coach] and Sam [Byrne, physio] here, just trying to figure out what the best way forward is. For the last few years, I have been thinking about that [life after cricket] anyway; it is just natural to think about that when you get to a certain age. People keep asking you the question of how long you are going to go on for. I don't think that has changed much really."

England are going through a tough phase as they first lost the Ashes before losing to West Indies as well. The batting has disappointed them and no one except for Joe Root has scored consistently. Anderson opined that the team needs a good coach to recover from this situation.

"They just need a really good coach. It's not about me the team needs a coach in place ASAP. It's not that far until the start of the international summer so I think the sooner the better," said Anderson.

England will play next against New Zealand in a three-match Test series beginning from June 2.