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Cricket Players'The deeper he got into captaincy, the harder it's been to be as matey': Anderson's admission on friendship with Root
England's legendary fast bowler James Anderson spoke in detail about playing under Joe Root.
Earlier this month, Joe Root announced his decision to step down as the Test captain of England. The English batter left his post holding the record for the number of wins as England Test captain — at 27 — while his status as one of the world's leading batters is secure after scoring eight centuries since the turn of 2021. His captaincy, however, came under scrutiny with England having only won just one of their last 17 Tests — the country's worst run since the 1980s.
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In Root's last series as England Test captain against West Indies, another controversy had erupted when the selection committee had decided to omit star senior bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad in the squad. The English team eventually lost the series 0-1, following which Root stepped down from the role.
Anderson has finally opened up on Root's decision and stated that there has always been “mutual respect” between the two, adding that his best years as a bowler came under the leadership of the English batter.
“I thanked him because I think it's not a coincidence that statistically my best years as a bowler have been under his captaincy. A lot is said about myself and Stuart under his captaincy, there's been a lot talked about in that respect, but for me, I think I have performed at my best under his captaincy,” said Anderson on BBC's Tailenders podcast.
“I thanked him as well for his support throughout the last few years. He's someone who's been every encouraging to me about carrying on playing. He wanted to get the most out of me as a bowler. He rested me at times to try and make sure I could just keep going for as long as I possibly could. So there's a lot of mutual respect there and for me he's always been a really good mate as well.”
However, Anderson acknowledged that his friendship with Root faced a significant test as the England batter grew in the leadership role.
“The deeper he has got into the captaincy the harder it's been to be as matey as we probably were,” Anderson said.
“But hopefully that'll now be easier to get back on those matey terms."
