Come on Jimmy, That's Enough, Please Retire

Standing on the cusp of the 700 Test wicket club, a feat achieved by only two bowlers in cricket's history, England pacer James Anderson finds himself at a crossroads going into the Ranchi Test. Jimmy needs another four wickets to rewrite history books, but if one looks at the broader picture, he has turned into a liability as his experience is not helping the Three Lions' cause.

On Day 4 of the Rajkot Test, where a young Yashasvi Jaiswal decided to humiliate the veteran England bowler by smashing him for three sixes back-to-back, it was more than a glimpse that Anderson is living on an extended life cover, provided by the England Cricket Board and, most importantly, by skipper Ben Stokes.

Jaiswal revealed his strategy against 'world-class' James Anderson following India's 434-run victory in the Rajkot Test.

"I think I was in a really good zone. I felt if he was going to bowl there, I would need to play my shots. He is a world-class bowler and I made sure that if I were going to hit him, I did it well. I was just trying my best and I really enjoyed that," Jaiswal told the official broadcaster Jio Cinema

Jaiswal must have enjoyed the onslaught, but the 41-year-old veteran certainly didn't. Just six wickets from two matches, at a paltry average of 35.83, just goes on to show that Jimmy doesn't have it in him anymore to run through the sides or provide crucial breakthroughs when his team needs it the most. His economy rate stands at 2.95, which is highly commendable, but that makes him a defensive bowler who looks to keep one end tight, build pressure, and allow the bowler from the other end to pick up heaps of wickets. Sadly, that hasn't happened in the series so far.

Former England captain Michael Atherton heaped massive praise on young Jaiswal and was stunned by his aggressive approach against someone as experienced as James Anderson.

"When he (Yashasvi Jaiswal) gets in, he has all the shots. Jimmy Anderson is rarely treated with such disdain as he was this afternoon when he got taken for those three consecutive sixes. So he's a very dangerous player and England need to work out a way to get him early if they can," Michael Atherton said on Sky Sports

With the young and inexperienced attack that England possesses, the hosts were always going to struggle against India, especially in India. The first Test in Hyderabad went their way, but since James Anderson came into the series, England's attack has looked toothless and without any plan.

Anderson looked threatening in the second Test in Vizag, but when Rajkot came, he was easy pickings for the Indian batters. In the first inning, Rohit Sharma decided to take him on, while in the second inning, the onus shifted to young Yashasvi.

James Anderson's Form Declines Under Bazball

Jimmy says that he has found a new lease of life while playing under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum's regime. Bazball might have given a new approach to the batters to go out and attack, but for the bowlers, Test cricket remains the same. They have to pick up 20 wickets to win the match.

Jimmy, under Stokes' leadership, has bagged 59 wickets from 17 Tests, at an average of over 26 and a strike rate of 59.3. In the last two years, Jimmy has taken just one 5-wicket haul against India in Birmingham in July 2022.

His presence in the XI hasn't helped England win consistently. Since June 2022, when Ben Stokes took over as regular Test Captain, the team has won nine Tests, lost six, and drawn one. In the six matches that England lost, Jimmy has contributed only 13 wickets from 11 innings, at an average of 46.61.

Clearly, the veteran pacer is not in the side because of his bowling exploits for the last two seasons. He is in the playing XI largely because of his reputation and for what he has done for England cricket, which is commendable.

Is Jimmy 'The Elephant' in England's Dressing Room?

Even at 41, Jimmy looks extremely fit, but is he able to deliver those match-winning spells for England to win Test matches for them? Even if the great man puts his hand on his heart, he will know what the response will be. His body might be fit enough to play Test cricket at the highest level, but he is certainly a mere shadow of the great bowler that he once was.

Maybe the England Cricket Board and Ben Stokes are too shy to tell the great man to stop and make way for young bowlers. His presence in the XI is now becoming a burden for England Cricket. It is highly likely that no one from England, including the selectors and fans, does not want to address the elephant in the room. It is also possible that the England selectors might have also left the decision to Jimmy himself to call it a day, but for the cricket fans around the world who have seen the great bowler that he is uprooting stumps, getting outside edges, and thundering the ball into the opposition batters pads at will, struggling for every wicket to help him reach the 700-Test-wicket milestone is a pain in itself to watch.

It is likely that even if India beats England 4-1 in the series and Jimmy continues to struggle, he will still feature in Ben Stokes' team, at least till Ashes 2025 Down Under. Anderson will be 43 by then and most likely break Australia's Shane Warne's 708 Test wickets record by then, but these records will hold no value, as by then his legacy would have been tarnished due to his selfishness and self-centeredness to play for records and not for the good of English cricket.

The outing in Rajkot for Jimmy was more than a reality check; his time is up. The more he elongates the pain, it will serve no good, both for England Cricket and for his legacy.

It is high time that James Anderson makes a wise decision and stops running after records. He has done enough for the fans to etch his name in record books forever, and 700 Test wickets is not a yardstick that will measure his greatness. It will just be another record in his long and glittering career.

If he does, we will celebrate the moment, and even if he doesn't, James Anderson will still be remembered as England's greatest Test cricketer.

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(The author is a cricket expert and has worked as a sports writer for broadcast and multimedia platforms for nearly a decade.)