My wife’s still furious at the way my England career ended, admits cricket legend Jimmy Anderson
CRICKET legend Jimmy Anderson admits his wife is still furious at the way his England career ended.
Fast bowler Anderson is the country’s leading wicket-taker in history, taking an incredible 704 during a 21-year Test career.
His final appearance came in his 188th Test at Lord’s against the West Indies in July.
Anderson showed he still has what it takes to star at the top as he took four wickets.
Yet beforehand he was informed by England captain Ben Stokes, coach Brendon McCullum and director Rob Key that he would not be part of next year’s group facing Australia in the Ashes.
The brutal blow saw Anderson call time on his international career.
He is still playing at club level after entering the IPL auction which takes place later this month.
And the ace insists he has made peace with the ugly end to his England days.
However, one person still unhappy about how Anderson was forced out is his wife, former model Daniella Lloyd.
Speaking on talkSPORT, Anderson explained: “I walked in there oblivious to what was going on and there was Rob Key, Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes there at this hotel in Manchester.
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“They just said, ‘We don’t see you making the Ashes in 18 months time, we want to give opportunities to other players and see who will take your place’. That’s how that came about.
“I definitely have made peace with it because lots of sports people say that you wake up one morning and you just know now’s the time to finish, or your standards drop or the quality of your performance drops.
“I’ve never really had that feeling, so maybe I needed that tap on the shoulder, that nudge in that direction.
“My wife was particularly angry. She was fuming, actually, and still is to this day. She still thinks I should be playing.
“But I feel like I’ve made peace with it. I guess there was some part of me that was frustrated at the time. But now I’m OK with it.”