James Anderson's freakish defiance of the laws of nature

Every new day seems to provide another reason to marvel at James Anderson's freakish defiance of the laws of nature, but this week of all weeks, it seems only right to place him on the pedestal. Not only is he back where his career truly began, 15 long years ago, but he does so as the ICC's newly-restored No.1 Test bowler, a ranking he last attained back in 2018. His seven wickets at Mount Maunganui perfectly encapsulated the performer he has long since become - phenomenally skilled, unswervingly accurate, and possessing the wisdom to adapt his method to suit the subtleties of each new scenario - but it was a very different brand of bowler who seized that 2008 comeback Test to the tune of 5 for 73 in the first innings. He'd started life as a tearaway outswinger, capable of 90mph speeds but liable to lose his radar in the process; now he'd found the means to channel those attributes into a more rounded, permanent threat, even if other key tools of his trade - not least the wobble-seam delivery - would be a few more years in the making. Nevertheless, it's instructive to recall his comments at the end of that performance … an early sign, it seems, of a player whose ambition was more burning than his diffident demeanour had previously let on. "I want to be the bowler that the captain can throw the ball to when we need a wicket," he said. "I want to stake a claim and be here for a long time." And so it has proven.

jimmy took a beating in 2nd innings