Anderson was the pick of the England bowlers during the India series due to the amount of reverse swing he got
Former Pakistan pace bowler Wasim Akram has admitted that England seamer James Anderson reminds him of his own bowling days, especially with the amount of reverse swing he can get with the ball.
Akram noted that England would only continue getting better when playing in the subcontinent since they have now mastered the art of making the ball reverse swing on spin-friendly pitches.
“The way they bowled tells me England will only get better because they have the knowledge of reverse swing and, crucially, an idea of how to use it,” The Telegraph quoted Akram as saying. “To me it looked like the Pakistan team were playing out there, it really did. The skill is phenomenal.”
Akram even went as far as saying that Anderson was just as good of a bowler as South African speed demon Dale Steyn.
“James Anderson has got the knack of reverse swing and will only get better,” Akram added. “I reckon he is on a par with Dale Steyn.”
When asked about youngster Steven Finn, Akram stated that he had more than enough pace, but still needed to work on and develop his game.
“Finn is raw and a bit wayward but he has the pace and just needs to spend more time with Mushy (Mushtaq Ahmed),” Akram said. “I can sense his influence.”
The former Pakistan pacer further mentioned that India lost their four-Test series against England since they restricted the amount of reverse swing they got off the pitches by not keeping one side of the ball completely dry and the other side nice and shiny.
“Look at the state of the ball in Kolkata when the two teams were bowling,” Akram pointed out. “When India had the ball it was average looking. Nobody was bothering to shine the ball, or take responsibility for keeping it dry.
“When England bowled it was different. One side of the ball was shiny and the other dry. Learn how to look after the cricket ball itself and also know your ball. The Kookaburra will take 40-50 overs to reverse, the Duke about 30 overs and the SG [which is used in India] will take about 10-15 overs. All these details every bowler should know.”