“True testament of fitness, passion for the game and skill” - Cricket fraternity reacts as James Anderson becomes first pacer to bag 700 Test wickets

James Anderson became the first pacer to pick up 700 wickets in Tests on Day 3 of the ongoing fifth Test between India and England at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala on Saturday, March 9. The 41-year-old achieved the feat during the 263rd innings (187th match) in his Test career.

The ace pacer dismissed Kuldeep Yadav, caught behind by wicketkeeper Ben Foakes, to achieve the marathon landmark. He has scalped more than 100 wickets against India (149), Australia (117) and South Africa (103) in his legendary career so far. The speedster has also bagged over 80 wickets versus New Zealand, Pakistan, and the West Indies.

Only Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan (800 wickets) and late Australian legend Shane Warne (708) have taken more wickets in the red-ball format. Among pacers, Anderson’s former England teammate Stuart Broad is placed second with 604 scalps.

The cricket fraternity took to X (formerly Twitter) to praise James Anderson for his brilliant achievement. Former India captain Anil Kumble, who has the most Test wickets for India (619), wrote:

“What a great bowler @jimmy9! Congratulations on your 700 test wickets. Monumental effort! A true testament of fitness, passion for the game and skill! Well done.”

Here are a few more reactions:

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Sachin Tendulkar pens down special post for James Anderson on his landmark achievement

Legendary Sachin Tendulkar has penned down a special post on social media for James Anderson for his landmark achievement in Test cricket. The 50-year-old credited former England captain Nasser Hussain for backing Anderson during his early days and wrote on X:

“The first time I saw Anderson play was in Australia in 2002, and his control over the ball looked special. Nasser Hussain spoke very highly of him back then and today, I am sure, he would say, “Maine bola tha” — that he had called it so early.”

Tendulkar added:

“700 test wickets is a stellar achievement. A fast bowler playing for 22 years and performing so consistently to be able to take 700 wickets would have sounded like fiction until Anderson actually made it happen. Simply magnificent!”

Anderson has bagged 11 wickets in four matches of the five-match Test series in India so far.

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