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Anderson eyes Sri Lanka series as England veteran overcomes broken rib

Record-breaking fast bowler James Anderson says he has overcome a rib injury and wants to tour Sri Lanka with England in March.

By John Skilbeck
James Anderson targets Sri Lanka series

London, February 9: James Anderson has told England's selectors he wants a seat on the plane to Sri Lanka next month.

England's record wicket-taker says he has recovered fully from the broken rib he sustained during the second Test victory over South Africa in early January.

That blow forced him to miss the third and fourth Tests, both of which England won to tie up a 3-1 series success.

Anderson, 37, hopes England pick him for the two-Test trip to Sri Lanka, even though he has struggled at times on tour against the Lions, in conditions not conducive to the Lancashire paceman masterful seam and swing.

He took just one wicket across two Tests in a November 2018 series, with Jack Leach, Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali spinning England to a 2-0 lead before being rested for the third match, which the tourists also won.

Anderson said he was now "all healed" from his rib setback and doing gym work - welcome news for England, given Jofra Archer will miss the Sri Lanka series because of an elbow injury.

"I've been training for a few weeks now, getting my bowling back up to speed. I feel really good," Anderson told Sky Sports.

"The aim for me is to get fit for whatever is next and, at the moment, that is Sri Lanka.

"With a broken bone, you are just waiting for that to heal, you've not lost any fitness. It's about building my bowling back up now. We've got a month before that tour, so we have to just wait and see what the selectors think."

With 584 wickets, Anderson has claimed the most victims of any fast bowler in Test history.

"If I'm fit I want to be playing for England, wherever that might be," he said.

"I showed in South Africa that I can still do it abroad. I think I've been unlucky in the last few months with injuries, but I think my record before that has been pretty good injury-wise."

Story first published: Saturday, February 8, 2020, 8:27 [IST]
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