"Don't Want To Do A Disservice...": James Anderson Breaks Silence On India-England Series Renaming
James Anderson on Monday said Sachin Tendulkar is someone he looked up to when he was growing up, after it was revealed that the trophy for the England-India Test series would be named after the two legendary cricketers. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and BCCI are expected to formally reveal the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy in the lead-up to the five-Test series between India and England, starting on June 20 at Leeds. 'It's a huge honour. I still can't quite believe it. Sachin is someone I looked up to when I was growing up, though I don't want to do him a disservice with his age," Anderson told ESPNCricinfo.
"I remember watching him, an absolute legend of the game, and I played against him a lot as well. So to have this trophy is a huge honour for me, and I couldn't be more proud." Talking about his experience of playing against India, Anderson said, "There are some great memories, I always loved playing against India. I'd say, after the Ashes, it was the series that England look forward to the most." 'I obviously had some tough times in India, it's a really hard place to go, but we won there which was a really special moment, and some of the battles we had in England were great. They had some amazing players." Anderson said India have put together a 'strong squad' for the series in England following retirements of batting greats Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
"This series is going to be exactly the same as you'd expect. I know India are going through a little bit of change with a new captain (Shubman Gill), and losing (Virat) Kohli and (Rohit) Sharma, but I still think they've got a strong squad with some really exciting players.
'England obviously are trying to play a certain way. It lends itself to a really exciting series,' he added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
42 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
James Anderson reacts after ENG-IND series named Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy: 'Don't want to do Sachin a disservice…'
Legendary fast bowler James Anderson expressed gratitude for being linked to the upcoming Test series between England and India. The highest wicket-taking pacer in Test history, Anderson was honoured alongside batting icon Sachin Tendulkar, and the series is set to be renamed in recognition of the two greats. The BCCI and ECB took the big call by deciding to replace the long-standing Pataudi Trophy with the Anderson-Tendulkar trophy ahead of the Test series in England. Anderson and Tendulkar engaged in numerous memorable on-field battles in red-ball cricket, ultimately retiring as legends in their respective disciplines. The English legend was ecstatic to get the honour and shared it with someone like Sachin, whom he said he looked up to while growing up. "It's a huge honour," Anderson told ESPNcricinfo during a DP World event at Lord's. "I still can't quite believe it. Sachin is someone I looked up to when I was growing up, though I don't want to do him a disservice with his age," he added. Anderson heaped praise on Tendulkar and said he is proud of this honour. "I remember watching him, an absolute legend of the game, and I played against him a lot as well. So to have this trophy is a huge honour for me, and I couldn't be more proud," he added. Anderson, fresh off his retirement after an extraordinary 188-Test career, is hailed as England's greatest fast bowler. On the other side stands Sachin Tendulkar, the iconic Indian batter who redefined greatness with 200 Test appearances before calling time on his career in 2013. Until now, the Test series between India and England has had two different names depending on the host nation—the Pataudi Trophy in England, honouring former India captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, and the Anthony de Mello Trophy in India, named after one of the BCCI's founding figures and its first secretary and president. Anderson further discussed playing against India, calling the 2007 Test series win a special moment in his career. "There are some great memories, I always loved playing against India," Anderson said. "I'd say, after the Ashes, it was the series that England look forward to the most. I obviously had some tough times in India, it's a really hard place to go, but we won there which was a really special moment, and some of the battles we had in England were great. They had some amazing players," he added.
The Hindu
2 hours ago
- The Hindu
All-round Kamboj shines as India A's second unofficial Test against England Lions ends in draw
Anshul Kamboj smashed his maiden First-Class fifty and also grabbed two wickets on the last day as India A's second unofficial Test against England Loins ended in a draw here on Monday. England Lions, set an improbable 439-run target in the final session in the four-day match slipped to 32 for three before both the captains decided to shake hands. India A will now move to Beckenham to join the senior players for a four-day intra-squad match to be played from June 13-16 at the Kent County Cricket Ground. India A's first unofficial Test against England Lions had also ended in a draw in Canterbury. India A batters consumed the first two sessions on the final day to garner experience on a flat track. Tanush Kotian struck a fluent 90 not out off 108 balls with 10 fours and a six while Kamboj made 51 not out off 86 balls, putting on an unbeaten 149 runs for the eighth wicket. India declared their second innings at 417/7 after the tea break. England were rocked early when Tushar Deshpande had Tom Haines caught at the second slip. It was a terrific catch from Nitish Reddy who flew to his left to catch the ball over his head. Kamboj then had Emilio Gay (5) caught behind by the wicketkeeper. He also broke through the defence of Jordan Cox (0) in the eighth over. Earlier, Dhruv Jurel (28), Reddy (42) and Shardul Thakur (34) spent quality time in the middle to gather enough game time in England as the Indians continue to prepare for the five-Test series starting on June 20. Jurel had hit 52 in the first innings while Reddy, who made 34 in the first essay, missed out on a half-century in the second innings. It was a productive outing for some of the Indian players as Test opener KL Rahul struck a patient 116 (168 balls, 15x4s, 1x6s) in the first innings to set up a total of 348. Karun Nair, who made a double hundred in the first game, scored 40 and 15 in the two innings of the second match while skipper Abhimanyu Easwaran bounced back to make a 92-ball 80 in the second essay. Yashasvi Jaiswal had a forgettable second unofficial Test as he was dismissed for 17 and five in the two innings. But the left-handed India opener had hit a quality 64 in the second innings of the first unofficial Test. Among the bowlers, left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed took 4/70 in the first innings while Tushar Deshpande chipped in with a couple. Kamboj took his tally to four wickets in the contest as he grabbed a two wickets each in the two innings. Brief scores: India A 348 & 417/7 decl in 92 overs (KL Rahul 51, Abhimanyu Easwaran 80, Nitish Kumar Reddy 42, Tanush Kotian 90 not out, Anshul Kamboj 51 not out; George Hill 3/64) drew with England Lions 327 & 32/3 in 11 overs (Anshul Kamboj 2/6).
India Gazette
4 hours ago
- India Gazette
Pant's roof-breaking stunner to Gill-Bumrah face off: What transpired in India's nets session ahead of 1st England Test?
Beckenham [UK], June 10 (ANI): Roof-breaking hits, a star-studded face-off and plenty of warming up and pep talks summarised India's practice session on Monday ahead of their first Test against England, starting from June 20 with the first Test at Leeds. The Test series would very well be an era-defining one in Indian cricket history, as after the retirement of two legends, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, a new-look Team India would be eyeing a fresh start in ICC World Test Championship (WTC) cycle of 2025-27 under captaincy of newly-appointed red-ball captain Shubman Gill. A video of players was posted on Instagram handle of the Indian cricket team with several players including skipper Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Ravindra Jadeja seen in action. The coaching staff, including head coach Gautam Gambhir, were also seen talking to players, guiding them as they sweat it out in nets. Gill and Pant were among the players who did some batting practice, while Siraj and Bumrah were seen throwing down balls. The team also took part in some fielding drills led by fielding coach T Dilip. As per a video from ESPNCricinfo on Instagram, a massive part of this practice session was a one-on-one battle between Bumrah and skipper Gill. Bumrah looked at his unplayable best against Gill, who had no choice to either struggle or to just leave the ball altogether. Another attractive sight during the session was Pant tonking a massive six on a Washington Sundar delivery, which broke a part of the roof of the facility at Beckenham, as per an ESPNCricinfo video on Instagram. The series will be held from June to August 2025, with matches scheduled at Headingley in Leeds, Edgbaston in Birmingham, Lord's and The Oval in London, and Old Trafford in Manchester. India's Test squad for England series: Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav. (ANI)
