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Is James Anderson an ATG test bowler?

Is James Anderson an ATG test bowler?


  • Total voters
    60

PlayerComparisons

International Debutant
The entirety of the 2010s decade until around 2018 was extraordinarily batter friendly. Whereas Pollock played 6 years in the 90s. The era argument might actually favour Anderson.
Also I think a bigger proportion of andersons away tests were in Aus and Ind so the strength of opposition argument probably favors Anderson as well
 

Bolo.

International Vice-Captain
Anderson post 2010 (15 years):

View attachment 40023

Away from home: 222 wickets in 65 tests @26.6

Shaun Pollock career (13 years) :

View attachment 40025

Away from home: 166 wickets in 44 tests @ 26.9

Why's Pollock's record much better? Seems pretty much identical to Anderson's really. Either they're both ATGs or they're both not imo. 🤔 🤔 🤔 🤔 🤔
Pollocks record got spanked by playing through nasty injuries, partly on account of his batting. Anderson sits out with a niggle, or when conditions don't suit. This is not an indictment of Anderson. It's just good bowler management, but it does explain the similarity in their numbers when Pollock at his best was significantly better.

I think your point is still fair though. They are close. One of them is the worst bowler I call an ATG. Just not sure which one.
 

bagapath

International Captain
In case this is not clear....

Malcolm Marshall is an ATG. Possibly the greatest.
He averages 32 in New Zealand at 3 wks/ test. It is only 3 three tests. And he averaged 26 per wicket before the last innings he bowled in and went wicketless. Despite these excuses it is a chink in his armour. He is an ATG despite this flaw. There is enough in his career to offset this.

Anderson played 17 tests in India and claimed 44 wickets at 30. It is not a good record. It does not help in this case-building for his ATG entry. His Ashes record is quite bad overall - for a lead bowler. No hiding from these obvious facts. Speak about any offsetting factors rather than claiming his Indian record is not bad.
 

Nintendo

Cricketer Of The Year
In case this is not clear....

Malcolm Marshall is an ATG. Possibly the greatest.
He averages 32 in New Zealand at 3 wks/ test. It is only 3 three tests. And he averaged 26 per wicket before the last innings he bowled in and went wicketless. Despite these excuses it is a chink in his armour. He is an ATG despite this flaw. There is enough in his career to offset this.

Anderson played 17 tests in India and claimed 44 wickets at 30. It is not a good record. It does not help in this case-building for his ATG entry. His Ashes record is quite bad overall - for a lead bowler. No hiding from these obvious facts. Speak about any offsetting factors rather than claiming his Indian record is not bad.
Why is marshall the cutoff for an ATG? He's like, top 5 pacers of all time, maybe top 10 absolute worst case. Using him here is like using smith as the cutoff for an ATG batting category. I've pointed this out already, but anderson at his peak has a span as good and as long as many other ATG (not marshall) in his era and across other era's. I think it's perfectly reasonable to have his ATG status on the margin depending on how you weigh the rest of his career, but just going "Lol, marshall has a much better than anderson" as a way to hold anderson outside that category is bone headed.
 

Fuller Pilch

Hall of Fame Member
Simple answer is that he's lower tier ATG. Is everyone happy now?
















Anderson is probably somewhere between Lance Cairns and Chris Martin.
 

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