IND vs ENG: James Anderson makes cheeky remark on Virat Kohli's absence from five-Test series

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IND vs ENG: Veteran England pacer James Anderson has rued the opportunity to be playing against Virat Kohli in the ongoing five-Test series against India. Virat Kohli, opted out of the series, to attend the birth of his son Akaay.

The former India captain was with his wife Anushka Sharma in London where they became parents for the second time. A recent picture of Kohli with his daughter Vamika sitting at a restaurant went viral on social media.

Anderson said that Kohli's absence is a welcome news for the English fans, before adding that the vistors would have wanted to test themselves against one of the best in the world.

“Yeah, you always want to play against the best players. And it’s been a shame that he’s not been a part of the series. We have had some great battles over the years. But not just for me, I think as a team you want to play against the best in the world, and he certainly is that,” Anderson said on JioCinema.

“I guess English fans will be thankful he’s not playing because he’s such a quality player. But from our point of view you want to test yourself, you want to come up against the best, and he’s been someone who I’ve found really challenging to bowl at over the years, and it’s a shame he’s not been playing,” Anderson added.

The 41-year-old is just two wickets short of becoming the first pacer, and only the third player to pick 700 Test wickets. He has played a total of 186 Test matches and picked 698 wickets at an average of 26.51 till date.

India have already secured the series by winning the second, third and fourth Test after losing the opener. The fifth and final Test will start from Thursday, March 7 in Dharamsala.