The Marathon Man Of English Cricket

Hello Friends,

My last few articles have been majorly focused on books which talk about extraordinary examples of leadership shown by some of the eminent personalities in their respective fields. Leadership can be exhibited in any sphere of life. We find various examples of that throughout our everyday life. At the same time there are leaders in various professions too. Mostly we celebrate the success stories of leaders who are well known for their achievements in their respective fields. A leader is built with lot of sacrifices, hard work, dedication & perseverance. It is not necessary for a leader to have a big title to be respected. Especially in any sports there is always one captain who leads the team. Does that mean rest of the players can not be termed as leaders?? Certainly not. Every single player in that team is a leader as he/she has been given particular responsibilities & various leadership qualities should be exhibited to fulfil those responsibilities. A leader does not need a title to inspire others. Today I am going to talk about one such unsung hero from cricketing world who always made his performances do  all the talking. He was focused on his goals & kept on moving towards the same overcoming every hurdle that came in his way. Let's find out some of the achievements of this legendary cricketer.                                               

   

James Michael Anderson, Popularly known as Jimmy Anderson the legendary England fast bowler we are talking about. He is a well known name in the cricketing circle majorly for his swing bowling. Recently he became the highest wicket taking fast bowler in test matches with 600 scalps. It's a phenomenal achievement as none of the fast bowling greats of the cricketing history have achieved it so far. For a bowler like Anderson who had his own share of injuries & lack of form at times it becomes even more special. Jimmy is England's leading wicket taker in One day internationals too. But what makes Anderson a standout performer & a leader of his era? We are not going to discuss about his bowling stats or famous England victories he had been a part of. Rather we will talk about the qualities that make him a stellar performer & also various lessons that can be learned from his career by a young fast bowler who wants to succeed like him.        

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In a career span over 15 years Anderson has represented England in more than 150 tests(As of Aug 2020).It's a remarkable achievement for any fast bowler. For many it's a dream too which requires a fair amount of grit. Anderson's journey is no different from any other fast bowler of his generation. He was not an automatic choice in the team during his initial days. It took almost around five years for him to cement his place in the England team. He was never an express fast bowler who could demolish the opposition with pace. But his ability to swing the ball both ways was something that made him a deadly operator. He was even more lethal in overcast conditions. There have been setbacks for him over the years as well in the form of various injuries. But those injuries were nothing compared to his passion for the game of cricket. Every time he came back even stronger to achieve extraordinary milestones for his country. During his cricketing journey he has tasted success in various forms including winning the Ashes, representing his country in ODI world cups, topping ICC bowling ranks, becoming highest wicket taker in ODIs & Tests for England and many more. But all the success that we see he has achieved today is a result of true passion for the sport, determination & an indomitable fighting spirit. At the age of 38 majority of the fast bowlers would prefer to hang up their boots and take up a coaching or commentary assignment. But here is this man who aims to achieve the next landmark of 700 test wickets.

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These days franchise T20 cricket is a big hit among the players majorly due to the lucrative financial offerings it has for players. But he refrains himself from playing those tournaments in order to keep himself fit & fresh for the national duty. He has not represented his country in the limited overs format for a long time now. Probably all these decisions helped him  prolong his career in the longer version of the game & achieve greater success. Over the years while playing for England he has not only lead the pace attack but also mentored the youngsters. He partnered with Stuart Broad to form one of the most dangerous fast bowling pair of the current generation. He is the leader of England pace bowling attack for years now. At times he has faced criticism too due to his lack of form or injuries. But he was focused on his goals. We can see the result of that focus today in form of 600 test wickets. With his grit & dedication he is inspiring all the young cricketers out there to chase their dreams too. 

It is fascinating to see how hungry he still is to perform at the highest level as he knows poor performance in few matches at this juncture of his career may be the end of the road. Anderson's love for the red ball cricket is also a lesson for the current generation. However famous T20 cricket may be these days, success in the longest format is something a cricketer still craves for. Like a true leader he believes in preparing in silence & his success doing all the talk. Cricketing world would definitely like to see this modern day great not just reaching 700 test wickets but going even further .

 Image Credit: NAPARAZZI / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)