London, Mar 13: In a remarkable moment during the fifth and final Test against India in Dharamsala, veteran England pacer James Anderson achieved a milestone by becoming the first pacer and the third bowler in history to claim 700 Test wickets.
His landmark wicket came in the form of Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav on March 9, during Anderson's 187th Test appearance. The event took a curious turn when Yadav, after edging a ball for a single, shared a premonition with Anderson.

"Kuldeep edged one down to third man for a single. As he got to the non-striker's end, and as I was walking back to my mark, he said: 'I'm going to be your 700th wicket'," Anderson recounted on BBC's Tailenders podcast. This exchange, filled with laughter from both, highlighted a unique moment of sportsmanship and camaraderie between the two players.
However, Anderson expressed mixed feelings about the achievement, noting that the pleasure of reaching the milestone was dampened by England's series loss. "I didn't celebrate, there was nothing to celebrate. Obviously, that was a nice moment to achieve the feat on a picturesque ground. I would have felt a bit more excited if we would have won," stated the 41-year-old pacer. England concluded the series with a 1-4 defeat against India.
Despite the series outcome, Anderson looks beyond personal milestones to the broader team perspective. "I don't play cricket for milestones, I play cricket to win matches for my team," he emphasised.
Reflecting on the series, Anderson acknowledged the positives and the learning curve it presented, especially for England's younger players. "I really enjoyed this tour, obviously we lost 4-1, the results weren't that great but we stuck together really well as a group. There were young spinners and batters who will learn so much from this tour," he concluded.