\u201cThere are not many better bowlers than Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami and Mohammed Siraj. They\u2019re world-class bowlers. You put Ishant Sharma in there as well, and that\u2019s a really strong bowling attack. For me, Zaheer Khan was someone I used to watch a lot to try and learn from. How he used the reverse swing, how he covered the ball when he ran into bowl, that\u2019s something I tried to sort of develop on the back of playing against him quite a few times here,\u201d said Anderson to JioCinema.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Anderson also admitted to being left in awe of Jasprit Bumrah\u2019s magical spell at Visakhapatnam, which included a reverse-swinging masterclass of taking a six-fer in England\u2019s first innings.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cWith someone of his quality you expect that standard from him. You know that reverse swing can play a big part in India and he\u2019s a great exponent of it. He\u2019s got good pace and is very accurate, very consistent.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThat yorker we saw to Ollie Pope, he\u2019s got that up his sleeve as well. It\u2019s not a fluke that he\u2019s got to number one in the world. He\u2019s a world-class bowler and from our point of view we weren\u2019t surprised that he put up a performance like that.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
At 41, Anderson is England\u2019s leading wicket-taker in Tests with 698 scalps, a longevity which is very rare to see at the international level. \u201cYeah, I guess you do look at things like that, but to be honest, I just go with the feel of me and my body. I don\u2019t feel like I\u2019m 41 years and 200 days old. You know, I still feel young.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI can keep up with the young guys in training. I can still bowl the speeds that I want to, I can still deliver the skills that I want to. So, for me that's the most important thing. The age is just a number and it\u2019s pretty irrelevant from my thought process,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Asked if the art of swing bowling was dying, Anderson denied such thoughts. \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s dying. Because of the growth of white-ball cricket in recent times, the focus has moved to change of pace and different deliveries like yorkers, and things like that. But for me, in Test cricket, we\u2019ve seen throughout this series already that swing can play a big part.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThe way Bumrah bowled, I think, has been amazing to watch. That reverse swing spell in the second Test was one of the best you\u2019ll see. So for me, I think there\u2019s still people out there wanting to learn the skills and it\u2019s not easy to do.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Anderson is leading an England fast-bowling line-up which includes Mark Wood, Ollie Robinson and Gus Atkinson, who haven\u2019t played Tests in India before. He feels it is his responsibility to pass on the understanding of how to bowl in Tests in India, based on his trips in this part of the world since 2006.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cWell, I think it\u2019s really important as a senior player that you offer as much advice as possible, especially coming to a place where there\u2019s quite a few guys in our team that haven\u2019t necessarily played that much out here. So, I think it\u2019s important that you do offer advice but at the same time not try to force yourself on them.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s important that they\u2019ve got to be asking questions as well, they\u2019ve got to try and find their own way because it\u2019s different for each player. I can\u2019t say to an Ollie Robinson or a Gus Atkinson that this is how you should bowl here. They\u2019re very different bowlers to me so they\u2019ve got to find what works for them and if I can offer any advice to help them along the way then great.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Anderson also felt that it was unfortunate for Virat Kohli to pull out of the series due to personal reasons, depriving the cricket fans of a face-off between the two. \u201cYeah, you always want to play against the best players. And it\u2019s been a shame that he\u2019s not been a part of the series. We have had some great battles over the years.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cBut not just for me, I think as a team you want to play against the best in the world and he certainly is that. I guess English fans will be thankful he\u2019s not playing because he\u2019s such a quality player. But from our point of view you want to test yourself, you want to come up against the best and he\u2019s been someone who I\u2019ve found really challenging to bowl at over the years and it\u2019s a shame he\u2019s not been playing.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Anderson signed off by recalling his fond memories of the 2-1 series triumph in India in 2012. \u201cThe 2012 series, when we came here, is probably the biggest one. I don\u2019t think an English team had won for quite a long time here -- for 20 odd years. So, for us to win here, it was probably one of the best series wins that I\u2019ve been involved in my career.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cYou know, it was just a great team performance. The batters turned up when we needed them. We had good spinners as well on that trip, which helped. So, I think that for me is right up there.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n", "image": "https:\/\/img.cricketnmore.com\/uploads\/2024\/02\/zaheer-khan-was-someone-i-used-to-watch-a-lot-to-try-and-learn-from-says-james-anderson.jpeg", "alt_img": "Zaheer Khan was someone I used to watch a lot to try and learn from, says James Anderson", "alt_title": "Ashes 2023: There are no thoughts about retirement; the hunger is still there, says James Anderson", "image1": null, "video": null, "seo_title": "Zaheer Khan Was Someone I Used To Watch A Lot To Try And Learn From, Says James Anderson On Cricketnmore", "seo_desc": "Zaheer Khan Was Someone I Used To Watch A Lot To Try And Learn From, Says James Anderson, James Anderson: England\u2019s veteran fast-bowler James Anderson revealed that former India left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan was someone he used to.", "seo_keywords": "James Anderson, New Delhi, Zaheer Khan, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Ishant Sharma, Ollie Pope, Mark Wood, Ollie Robinson, Gus Atkinson, Virat Kohli", "tag": "", "tagging": "James Anderson, New Delhi, Zaheer Khan, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Ishant Sharma, Ollie Pope, Mark Wood, Ollie Robinson, Gus Atkinson, Virat Kohli", "status": "1", "img_rpt": "0", "google": "1", "standout": "0", "edapps": "0", "pulse": "0", "no_index": "0", "feed": "0", "fixture": null, "slug": "zaheer-khan-was-someone-i-used-to-watch-a-lot-to-try-and-learn-from-says-james-anderson", "user_id": "0", "read_count": "0", "ians_date": null, "ians_time": null, "server_time": null, "trash": "0", "view_count": "945", "page_break": "0", "instant_articles": "1", "auto_link": "1", "created": "2024-02-28 15:58:03", "updated": "2024-02-28 15:58:03", "img_from": "Image Source: IANS", "img_source": null, "schedule_publish": null, "news_keywords": "James Anderson, New Delhi, Zaheer Khan, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Ishant Sharma, Ollie Pope, Mark Wood, Ollie Robinson, Gus Atkinson, Virat Kohli", "livescore_text": null, "livescore_link": null, "btn_text": null, "resend_feed": "1", "google_feed": "1", "read_more": "0", "posted_by": "23", "jio_date": "2024-02-28 15:58:03", "scheduled": "0", "news_now": "1", "breaking_news": "1", "google_date": null, "featured": "0", "pred_match_id": null, "article_content_type": null, "england_cricket": "0", "link": "https:\/\/www.cricketnmore.com\/cricket-news\/zaheer-khan-was-someone-i-used-to-watch-a-lot-to-try-and-learn-from-says-james-anderson-139276" }