James Anderson praises "unique" dressing room environment and bowler Matt Potts

GEORGE DOBELL: The England pacer, who is set to return to the XI at Edgbaston, believes Potts has "all the attributes" to be a success in Test cricket

The sight of James Anderson and Ben Foakes training at Edgbaston on Wednesday will have given England a boost ahead of the Test against India which starts on Friday.

Anderson, who missed the final Test against New Zealand due to a minor ankle injury, bowled without issue in the nets at Edgbaston, while Foakes, who was substituted out of the game after testing positive for Covid, both kept and batted in training. He returned "more than one" negative Covid test before returning to the squad, according to a team spokesperson.

Should the players suffer no reaction to their training, they are expected to return to the side for the India Test.

That would mean the only selection dilemma for the England management is whether Jamie Overton or Stuart Broad makes way for Anderson. In normal circumstances, we could probably expect Broad to win the nod. But he is understood to be a little stiff from his exertions in recent weeks so could be rested. On a pitch that is expected to be good for batting, Overton’s extra pace may be deemed an asset, too. None of the seamers who featured in Leeds bowled in training on Wednesday.

One man who looks sure to play is Matt Potts. The 23-year-old is only three Tests into his career but, having impressed on a couple of flat pitches during the New Zealand series, looks set to enjoy a long career at this level. In sustaining an immaculate line and length over long spells, he played a key part in the victory at Leeds, and claimed seven wickets in the win at Lord’s. All of which has impressed Anderson.

^{James Anderson heaped praise on Matthew Potts [Alex Davidson/Getty Images]}

"He has all the attributes," Anderson said. "He has settled in really well. He bowled brilliant throughout the series and I don’t think we have seen the best of him because he can swing the ball both ways. We have seen how consistent he is with his length, and his body… he is a strong boy who can last a good while. He has a massive future."

That line about having "seen the best of him" would appear to be a reference to the Dukes balls at use in this English summer. Within days of the season starting, bowlers had started to complain that there were going soft, out of shape and now swinging. The sight of teams – all teams – asking umpires to change them has become common.

While Anderson admitted the increased amount of wobble-seam bowling might be a contributory factor, he also suggested there was "something fundamentally wrong" with the current batch of balls.

"The real frustration is they go out of shape so quickly, they go soft and they don’t really swing," Anderson said. "There’s obviously something fundamentally wrong, something about the ball and it’s annoying to keep on changing it. I’m sure the umpires will be annoyed as well. I just hope they keep trying to make better balls in the foreseeable future."

It might also be relevant that modern batters – especially modern England batters – appear to want to smash most deliveries out of the ground. Anderson has sympathy for his New Zealand counterparts and admits he couldn’t like to have to bowl at Jonny Bairstow in current form.

"I think it’s horrible," he said with a smile. "I don’t want to think of someone coming at me like that. I thought New Zealand bowled really well to be honest, especially that spell when they got us 50 for 6 in Leeds. It was one of the best opening spells I’ve seen for a long time.

^{James Anderson bowling during the England-New Zealand series [Stu Forster/Getty Images]}

"But the confidence our batters have got at the moment…they’re fearless. They just want to progress the game.

"It’s tough, especially as we’re playing on good pitches and these balls aren’t doing a lot. It’s difficult. You have to just keep trusting yourself and tell yourself to bowl your best ball and hope they make a mistake, hope that one of the balls that goes in the air goes to hand or they nick one or something.

"It’s really difficult but I think it’s the same with any batter around the world. When they’re in form they’re really hard to bowl to. I’d rather not think about having to bowl at Jonny Bairstow, to be honest.”

Tough though modern cricket may be on bowlers, Anderson admitted there was something about the current England dressing room that was "unique" in its confidence and calm. For a man with more than 20 years’ experience of dressing rooms, it is a revealing comment.

"It does feel unique," he said. "I have never been in a dressing room before when we have chased 300 on a pitch that is turning and everyone being so calm, believing we were going to chase them down. That for me, after 20 years of playing international cricket, I had never seen before.

"You always get a few jittery people but one to 11 and the staff included were just calm and believed. I think that belief can go such a long way especially with the young players we have got. Trying to develop their confidence and experience, I think that will do wonders for them."