There were no fairytales for Jimmy Anderson, no last-ball wickets, but after soaking up the applause and the emotion of a grateful and generous Lord’s crowd at the end of his final Test, no regrets either. “I’m just really, really pleased it went the way it did,” he said.
Anderson admitted he was “trying to hold the tears back” as he contemplated his final game. “I’ve never really dreamed about my retirement. I never really thought what that would look like,” he said. “But this has been an amazing few days. I’m a little bit overwhelmed by the reaction of the crowd every time I’ve taken the field. Today was really special. Seeing my daughters ring the bell on day one, incredibly special and emotional. I’m just happy that I actually bowled half decent and got some wickets to contribute to a win.”
This routine victory, which ended a little more than an hour into the third day with Gus Atkinson taking the final wicket to secure victory over West Indies by an innings and 114 runs – Anderson claiming his fourth wicket of the match and the 704th of his career by finding the edge of Joshua Da Silva’s bat on the last morning – was certainly not the most compelling of his 188 Tests. But the 41-year-old said his emotions after its conclusion represented both what he would most miss about the sport – “The feeling we’ve got now, winning a Test match, there’s no better feeling” – and what he would miss the least: “Feeling like I do now, I feel about 55 after the overs I’ve bowled this week. The aches and pains that you wake up with, I don’t think I’ll miss them.”
Anderson said he had never given much thought to the way he is perceived – perhaps treasured would be a more appropriate word – by England’s supporters. “I’m certainly getting more of a feeling with that this week,” he said. “I think that’s probably what makes me most happy about having a long career. I’d love to think that someone took up the art of bowling because they watched me bowl. And that’s probably our job as cricketers as well. You’re not just trying to win games of cricket, you’re trying to be a role model. When I was growing up I was looking up to players, trying to imitate them or copy them, to be like them, and I love the thought that kids are doing that because of me.”
Ben Stokes said the occasion had been “very, very special to be a part of”. “He’s a great person, a great man,” Stokes said. “I didn’t tell him but he was always going to bowl until we got the last wicket, however long it took. I wasn’t going to take him off, even if he said he was tired. What sums him up is Gus actually apologised to him for taking that last wicket and Jimmy just told him to ‘fuck off’. He’s someone who loves to see other people do well.”
Anderson’s new role will be to ensure that they do: when the players report for duty in Nottingham for the second Test, Anderson will begin a new chapter as a bowling coach, initially until the end of the summer. “It’s been my job for probably five or 10 years to try and help people feel comfortable in Test cricket, whether it’s out on the field or in the dressing room,” Anderson said. “There’s been games I’ve not played where I’ve still tried to help out guys that are playing. So I feel like there’s not much difference for me in that role.
“Obviously I’ve studied the game for 20 years. I think I’ve got a good knowledge of the technical side of it as well, and I feel like I can have a real impact on the guys. I’m definitely not going to be telling someone how to bowl, I’ll be a sounding board. I’ll be there if they need me. I’m hoping that I love this job and I’m hoping that I’m good enough at it that they’ll want to keep me on, but we’ll just wait and see.”
