India vs England: Experienced, More Skillful & A Wiser James Anderson Could Be A Handful in India

James Anderson picked up his 30th fifer in Test cricket when his spell of 6/40 in 29 overs restricted Sri Lanka to 381 in the first innings of the second Test in Galle ultimately paving away for a comprehensive win for England and with it a successive series sweep in the island nation. Anderson went past the great Glenn McGrath who had a total of 29 five-wicket hauls (in an innings) in his Test career.

At the age of 38, Anderson again showcased his tremendous work ethic, fitness and skill in hot and humid conditions not necessarily suited to swing and seam bowling. He persevered bowling an immaculate line and length getting a hint of seam movement, a little extra bounce and a fraction of reverse swing - all just enough to trouble the Sri Lanka batsmen and keep his team in the match despite losing a crucial toss.

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Anderson gave his best performance (in an innings) in Asia in Galle. Not only did he pick 6 wickets, 5 of them of the top-middle order, but was also brilliantly restrictive bowling as many as 13 maidens and conceding at an economy rate of just 1.38 - a testimony of his accuracy and control despite the tough conditions. Interestingly, the only other fifer he has picked in Asia was also against Sri Lanka in Galle in 2012 - but England went on to lose the encounter.

However, with his match-turning performance at the same ground the second time around, Anderson has sounded alarm bells in India with Chennai, the venue for the first Test not too far away from Galle.

Anderson is the leading wicket-taker amongst fast bowlers in the history of Test cricket with 606 wickets in 157 matches at an average of 26.6 and strike rate of 55.9. He is also the fourth-highest wicket-taker overall only behind the legendary spin trio of Muttiah Muralitharan (800), Shane Warne (708) and Anil Kumble (619). A decent outing in India and the great England pacer will surpass the champion leg spinner from India during the four-match series.

Apart from his disciplined line and length, conventional swing with the new ball and seam movement he can generate on the most placid of wickets, Anderson has the ability to bowl what the great Sachin Tendulkar termed as 'reverse reverse swing' with a relatively older red ball. Basically Anderson was one of the first in the world to bowl the reverse outswinger with the wrist position of the conventional inswinger - an art he had mastered and which was practically impossible to implement. This will make him a big threat in India where he already has a decent record.

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Anderson has picked 26 wickets in 10 Tests in India at an average of 33.46. One of his finest performances in the country in a match-context came in a series-defining performance at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata in 2012 where he bagged three wickets in each innings. He exploited the reverse swinging conditions brilliantly getting the prized wicket of Tendulkar with a reverse outswinger in the first innings. Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni were the other big wickets he claimed in the match playing a pivotal roe with the ball in England's historic series win over India - their first in India since 1984!

Anderson had given another series-defining performance in India in 2006. He returned with four wickets in the first innings of the third and final Test in Mumbai including the big ones of Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid before removing Irfan Pathan and Virender Sehwag in the second. England went on to register a massive 212-run victory and drew level the series.

Overall in Asia, Anderson has a total of 66 wickets in 23 Test matches at an average of 29.1 and strike rate of 66.6. Just for perspective, Ishant Sharma has an average of 32.14 in Asia, Kagiso Rabada - 32.85, Vernon Philander - 38.06, Zaheer Khan - 34.46, Trent Boult - 31.7, Makhaya Ntini - 34.52, Morne Morkel - 30.85, Steve Harmison - 29.27, Stuart Broad - 36.31, Craig McDermott - 37.14 and Mitchell Johnson - 43.02 to name a few fine fast bowlers who played in the region.

Anderson became the oldest pacer to pick a fifer in the sub-continent with his performance in Galle. With no signs of slowing down or any wear and tear, a wiser, more skillful and experienced Anderson could be a handful against India as the series gets underway in a week from now.

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