James Anderson, England's All-Time Leading Wicket-Taker, to Receive Knighthood

Synopsis

James Anderson, renowned as England's leading wicket-taker in Test cricket, is set to receive a knighthood from Rishi Sunak's resignation honours list. He is the only athlete to be honored this way, previously recognized with an OBE medal in 2016.

Key Takeaways

James Anderson is England's top wicket-taker in Test cricket.
He will receive a knighthood in Rishi Sunak's resignation honours list.
Anderson retired with 704 Test wickets.
He made his Test debut against Zimbabwe in 2003.
Anderson is currently signed to play for Lancashire.

New Delhi, April 11 (NationPress) James Anderson, the all-time leading wicket-taker for England in Test cricket, is set to receive a knighthood as part of former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's resignation honours list, making him the only athlete to receive this accolade. Previously, Anderson was honored with an OBE medal by the Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace in 2016.

Anderson concluded his international cricket career after England's dominant victory by an innings and 114 runs against the West Indies in the first Test at Lord's in July 2024, where he took four wickets across two innings. His retirement was influenced by the decisions of England coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes, who aimed to develop a future-focused bowling attack.

At the age of 41, he finished his red-ball career with 704 wickets for England, marking him as the highest wicket-taker among fast bowlers and placing him third overall behind Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralidaran (800) and Australia's Shane Warne (708) in Test history.

Making his Test debut against Zimbabwe in 2003, Anderson earned a record 188 caps in this format for England, ranking second on the all-time Test appearances list, just behind legendary player Sachin Tendulkar, who participated in 200 Tests for India. He also played 194 ODIs, claiming 269 wickets, thus holding the record for the most wickets for England in the 50-over format, along with 19 T20Is, but transformed into a Test-match specialist in 2015.

Even though he has retired from international competitions, Anderson remains committed to playing for his home county this summer. He debuted in white-ball cricket for Lancashire in 2000, followed by his red-ball debut in 2002, accumulating a total of 1,114 first-class wickets, 358 in List A cricket, and 41 in T20s.