England fast bowler is currently at the top of the world as he recently became the first fast bowler to scalp 600 Test wickets. A feat which is truly remarkable and very few will ever go beyond it in Test cricket. Anderson has always had a fascinating battle with Indian captain Virat Kohli. The two modern-day giants have always competed against each other in the toughest format of the game.
In 2014, Anderson was the nemesis of a young Virat Kohli as he constantly dismissed him in the 5 match Test series. Kohli came back to play the Test series in 2018 with an added burden of captaincy. This time Kohli had the better of Anderson as he scored 593 runs at an average of 60 including 2 quality hundreds.
Kohli was a different player in 2018 – James Anderson
Recently Anderson admitted that Kohli came back as a different batsman in 2018 and was batting at a different level. The England fast bowler complimented Kohli for the way he was patient throughout the series and left the ball which is why he scored trucks of runs.
“It’s always tough bowling at batsmen of that quality. It will be a tough battle but that’s something I do enjoy. You want to get the best players out,” Anderson told the Test Match Special podcast.
He added, “I had some success against him in 2014 and then he came back a completely different player in 2018 and was incredible. He left the ball really well in 2018. The first time he came over (in 2014), when I was bowling out-swingers he might chase it early on and that brought the edge and the slips into play”.
“He left it a lot better and he was a lot more patient (in 2018). He waited for you to bowl at him and then he’s very strong off his legs so he could score freely”, said the 38-year-old about the changes he saw in Kohli’s game in 2018.
Meanwhile, the duo of James Anderson and Virat Kohli might be playing for the final time against each other when England play the five-match Test series in India early next year. Anderson has not dismissed Kohli since 2014 as the India captain has scored over an average of 50 against him since his horror 2014 series.