'Mark my words, Jimmy Anderson will be the star of the Ashes in 2009' ( Chris Brown, sometime in 2008.)
I've been gently taking the mick out of Brownie about this statement for about the last 12 months almost confident that Anderson wouldn't even be in the team for the Ashes. Even last Saturday we we're sat in the Sportsmens Arms joking that Anderson was a star, but with the bat and not the ball. We were talking in light of the great rearguard performance at Cardiff when all of the England bowlers looked fairly innoucous and pretty flat pitch.
In the last 12 months though something has changed with Anderson. He's matured. He's developed an inswinger and a measure of control he's not previously shown before. More interestingly he's started to sledge. Nasser Hussain in his autobiography said that Anderson was one of the hardest cricketers he's ever had to captain because he was so introverted. So what has changed?
Anderson has said himeself that he has matured and has grown into the role of the number one bowler. He destroyed the West Indies in the summer and bowled such outstanding spells that he moved Hussain to write:
He is the finished article now, at his absolute peak, and that applies whatever the opposition and the conditions. He will be the biggest threat to the Australians of the English attack.
Maybe Brownie was right, my phone will be buzzing all summer with incoming text messages from him. Watching Anderson gives interviews, his body laungauge on the field, the sledging and hard stares makes me think that Hussain is right. Anderson has finally arrived. He's at the peak of his powers. He now has the platform on which to perform. Can he deliver England the ashes?
Getting back to the Wags, it was interesting to see Michael Clarke's rather feeble dismissal yesterday. I'm sure his girlfriend Lara Bingle could have played a better shot.
Looking at today's weather forecast it looks like we're in for more cloud cover and humid condtions. Steep forward Mr Anderson, your country needs you.
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