Former England Test skipper Joe Root has given teammate and world’s leading wicket-taker among pacers James Anderson a big reason to go all out in the upcoming Ashes, saying he wants to see the veteran bowler go on performing for many more years.
Anderson, who is two months shy of turning 41, is just 15 wickets short of touching the 700-wicket mark, and the Ashes, starting on June 16 in Birmingham, is a great opportunity for him to once again emerge as the hosts’ leading bowler and guide the team to victory after their 0-4 drubbing in Australia two years ago.
Root, who was the England captain when the team toured Australia in 2021, posted a collage of five images of Anderson right from his early days with the England side in the 2000s to how he would look like two decades from now — all salt and pepper with a grey beard, a bespectacled wrinkled face, but still celebrating a Test wicket on the pitch.
“He keeps getting better and better. Can’t wait for the next 20 @jimmy9,” Root tweeted.
Root, 32, will be an integral part of the side as they aim to win the Ashes under captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum with their aggressive style of play.
Sourav pads up for Tripura
Calcutta: Sourav Ganguly has accepted an offer to be the brand ambassador of Tripura tourism.
The former India captain had a meeting with Tripura’s tourism minister, Sushanta Chowdhury, at his residence on Tuesday where the proposal was formally accepted.
“It’s a matter of great pride that former captain of Indian cricket team Shri Sourav Ganguly Ji has accepted our proposal to be the Brand Ambassador of Tripura Tourism... I am confident that Shri Ganguly Ji’s participation will definitely give an impetus to the state’s tourism sector,” Tripura chief minister Manik Saha tweeted.
Tripura is ruled by a BJP government and Sourav’s involvement with the state was enough to send the rumour mills abuzz. Sources, however, suggested that not much should be read into it and the move was apolitical.
Sourav was replaced by Roger Binny as BCCI president last October while Jay Shah, the son of Union home minister Amit Shah, continued as secretary.
