“ABowling from the Pavilion End was…” Jimmy Anderson of course. It has been that way since he took 5 for 73 against Zimbabwe in his first Test here 21 years ago. He was almost a fixture at Lord’s, like the old Father Time on the weathervane above the scorer’s table. Twenty-one other players from his first Test match are now long gone: one was Anderson’s last boss at the England and Wales Cricket Board; The other was Anderson’s last boss at the England and Wales Cricket Board. Another is his latest piece; a third is one of his coaches; and many of the rest make a living talking about him and his teammates. But Anderson is still there, at least last week.
His old teammates will tell you that he was a sullen kid who barely spoke to them all week. He didn’t look all that different now, sure, a little slower and a little more wrinkled, but still surly. Anderson only managed two runs per over, but he still bowled four more balls than he did smiling.
They set off a little late, and Anderson didn’t seem to like waiting. The pregame nonsense lasted longer than he wanted. Both teams were trapped at the entrance to the long hall while tributes to him played on large screens on either side of the field. Anderson leaned against the doorframe, legs crossed and arms crossed, looking down at the ground as the others watched, a wallflower at his own party. If he were left alone, you’d guess Anderson would rather retire from Test cricket without letting anyone know he was participating.
Not least because, if England continue to control the story, they might make it look like it was his decision rather than theirs for him. “Dear Jimmy…” the video pays homage, which sounds like a letter soldiers receive from their girlfriends back home. “I’m sorry to tell you, I’ve met someone else.” He is 6ft 2in, 26 years old and bowls at a speed of 90mph.
After the national anthem, Anderson watched as his family rang the arena bell to mark the start of the day’s game, handed his hat and sweater to referee Rod Tucker, ran his hands through his bangs and rehearsed his opening remarks , and finally the game started.
This day was made for it, God gave swing bowling. The floodlights were on, the sky was overcast and the south wind was blowing.
Anderson knows one of the two batsmen as well as any other batsman he bowls: this is his 13th Test with Craig Brathwaite, and Brathwaite Always moving slowly and steadily, starting the race at a manly pace and setting off for a mountain climbing adventure. However, at the other end, Mikael Luiz made his debut. Louis was so young and so confident in himself that when Anderson bowled him a fuller ball on his stump, he didn’t think twice and instead bowled a four over long off. That was pretty much the last pitch Anderson allowed anyone to tee off all morning. In the sky box, his old friend Stuart Broad implored him to throw it out.
But not Anderson. So everyone waited and waited, and after a while it felt like the wait had been too long, and the champagne started to fade. We know how to say goodbye, but in reality these moments rarely go the way we hope. Anderson scored nine runs in his first over, his second and third overs were maidens, and there were a few singles in his fourth and fifth overs, but not a single wicket in them. Eventually Ben Stokes replaced him with Gus Atkinson and Brathwaite immediately chipped a sloppy chip into his wicket. Well, there’s one more, Gus, with 699 left.
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Second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seven actually followed quickly, some with great catches and others with poor shots. Test wickets rarely seem so easy to come by.
Midway through the afternoon, Atkinson was 7 for 36 and people were looking at the list of the best Test names on debut. Meanwhile, Anderson is still waiting for his first opportunity. He said before the game that all he wanted to do in the final Test was contribute, and here he was the only one in the attack without a wicket. So Stokes brought him back to the bowling of last man Jayden Sears.
And then, finally, there it was. He hit a nice inswinger off the inside edge of Sears’ bat and in front of his leg stump. Sears called for censorship, and just because it was the thing to do, everyone turned to the big screen to watch the replay. It’s a beautiful ball, and we’ve seen him pass it dozens of times before, but if you look in the right direction, even after all these years, you’ll see something completely new. In the middle of the court, Anderson smiled broadly. You’ve never seen him so happy catching rabbits.
