James Anderson: Stuart Broad's advice led to wickets

Anderson had a hat-trick opportunity on day one after dismissing Simon Harmer and Keshav Maharaj

James Anderson has credited Stuart Broad for the advice that gave him an opportunity to bowl for a hat-trick on the first day of the LV= Insurance Test at Emirates Old Trafford.

Anderson had just seen Simon Harmer, the South African allrounder, play an impressively solid forward defensive stroke when Broad made his suggestion. And with England having made a point of bowling short at tailenders in recent months, it was a ploy that worked perfectly on Harmer.

"So, the ball before he actually lunged at me and got a good stride in," Anderson said. "Stuart said, put your square-leg back and make him think you're going to bounce him and then bowl the same [full] ball.

"Then his stride was much smaller and he was stuck on the crease.

"It's good that he suggested it. I was thinking about the game and the field positioning. It's nice when something like that comes off."

^{Stuart Broad [Stu Forster/Getty Images]}

Anderson followed up with a similar delivery to trap Keshav Maharaj leg before with his next ball to give himself a chance of a hat-trick. Again, he took Broad's advice but, on this occasion, admits the excitement of the moment got to him.

"Stuart was at mid-on and came over and said 'when I took my two international hat-tricks, I just want to full and straight'. So I was trying to go full and straight but I just got my line horribly wrong. I got a bit giddy trying to bowl it a bit too quick, probably."

Anderson was particularly proud of England's display in the field as he felt the Dukes ball had, once again, gone out of shape very quickly. While there had been hopes the new batch of balls used at Lord's was an improvement on those seen earlier in the summer, Anderson was unimpressed.

And he suggested the umpires were frustrated, too, as the relatively small size of the ball saw it pass the on-field test whereby it has to fail to pass between hoops to justify being changed.

"They felt better last week," he said. "The one we got today was out of shape from about 20 overs. But because it was small, it was fitting through the hoops.

"So it was frustrating for the umpires. They couldn't change it was it went through the hoops. But every time we were hit for a boundary it went a different shape. Everything but round."

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