Joe Root: Question Jimmy Anderson at your own peril

NICK FRIEND: The England captain confirmed that the national side's leading Test wicket-taker would play in the second Test at the Ageas Bowl against Pakistan

James Anderson will be part of England’s bowling attack in the second Test against Pakistan beginning on Thursday, Joe Root has revealed.

Anderson was not at his best during the first Test at Emirates Old Trafford last week, leading to some speculation that he might step away from the national side after a remarkable career which has so far brought him 590 Test wickets.

Speaking on Monday, however, the 38-year-old quashed any such talk, stressing that he still wants to “play as long as I can”, while acknowledging that he would come under pressure from a strong battery of seamers, also including Jofra Archer, Stuart Broad, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes and Ollie Robinson, who features in an England squad for the second time this summer ahead of the second Test at the Ageas Bowl.

Confirming that Anderson would keep his place rather than being rested and rotated – as has been a par for the course of this exceptional summer, Root added: “I think to question Jimmy’s ability and his record, do that at your own peril. There’s a reason he’s got so many wickets over such a long period of time – it’s because he’s a consistent performer.

“I don’t think it will be long before he’s back in the wickets. I think it would be very silly for us to write someone like Jimmy off. He’s still as dedicated as ever, he’s working very hard at his game and looking very good in practice. I don’t think it will be long before he’s got another five-fer next to his game.”

On Anderson’s lacklustre display at a ground where one of the ends bears his name, Root explained that the pair had spoken after play one evening, with Anderson subsequently admitting following the conclusion of the match that he had allowed his frustration to get to him and “for the first time in probably 10 years I got a little emotional on the field”.

^{Ollie Robinson is in England's 14-man squad}

Root said: “We had quite an honest conversation on one of the evenings, and I think being able to get that off his chest and to talk about it has definitely helped him. It just shows that even the greats of the game and the greats of English cricket still have those days where it doesn’t always it doesn’t always come as naturally to you and it doesn’t always feel like the easiest game in the world.

“You know that it can be a real struggle sometimes. That’s just the way it goes. I think with Jimmy, you know that it won’t be long before he’s right back at the top and the peak of his powers. I’m very much looking forward to seeing him perform again this week.”

On Robinson, he added that the Sussex bowler’s performances at county level had made picking him a no-brainer. Following his release from the initial bio-secure bubble, which allowed him to represent Sussex against Hampshire in the first round of Bob Willis Trophy matches, the 26-year-old recorded match figures of 8 for 65.

“He’s been involved in the bubble from the outset and he’s been really impressive,” Root said. “For a long time, he’s performed at county level and it’s nice to see him full of confidence bowling with high skill in preparation for this next game.

“I think his performances have rightly given him an opportunity to be part of this squad. Over a long period of time, we’re going to need a battery of fast bowlers and high-skilful bowlers, and he’s definitely in that bracket. He’s been wonderful for Sussex for a long period of time.”

Root also added that Mark Wood, who hasn’t featured since England’s defeat against West Indies in the first Test of the summer, was “certainly in contention for this week”, having had “a little bit of a knock”.

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