Match-winner James Anderson will be a bowler England continue to rely on ufffd in Birmingham, Brisbane, or anywhere else.
Match-winner James Anderson will be a bowler England continue to rely on ufffd in Birmingham, Brisbane, or anywhere else.
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| England pace bowler James Anderson. PIC/AFP |
Edgbaston is the next stop on Friday for Anderson, who confirmed Trent Bridge as his favourite international venue with career-best match figures of 11 for 71 as England trounced Pakistan by 354 runs. The Nottingham ground appears increasingly made for swing ufffd and, as England captain Andrew Strauss and many others have noted over the past week, there is no better bowler in the world than Anderson in such conditions.
But the question being asked of 28-year-old Anderson and the England management is not whether he can torment Pakistan for a second successive week but how he can adapt his skills for this winter's Ashes in Australia.
There, heat and sunshine are most likely to prevail ufffd and the Dukes ball which hoops around so obligingly in England will be replaced by the less responsive Kookaburra. England coach Andy Flower is nonetheless convinced Anderson, who averaged a chastening 82 with the ball on England's last tour to Australia, is a lynchpin of the attack in all circumstances. "It was a superb performance," he said of the Lancastrian's Nottingham masterclass.
"We know what he can do when the ball swings, and that was a very good thing for his confidence."
But what about the Plan B, when conditions are less than perfect? "Isn't that like any bowler? If (Muttiah) Muralitharan came across a glass-like pitch he would be less effective than he is when he bowls at Galle. That is the same for any bowler. It is important to learn to adapt to those different situations. He is a better bowler than he was, and he will continue learning. We do rely a lot on him ufffd regardless of conditions," said Flower.
