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Rookie coach can draw on veteran duo for series against Black Caps

Ian Anderson

Brendon McCullum will begin his reign in charge of England by overseeing a pace bowling spearhead who made his test debut before his coach did.

James Anderson is poised to make his return to the home side for the first test in the three-match series starting at Lord’s on Thursday night (NZT).

Remarkably, the 39-year-old made his first test appearance 10 months before McCullum, who was a surprise appointment this month as the new coach of the England men’s test outfit.

Anderson and fellow veteran Stuart Broad, 35, have been included in the England squad for the first two tests after the pair were unwanted for the recent series against the West Indies in the Caribbean.

That snub may have spelt the end for the pair, who have 1177 test wickets between them, but a 1-0 series defeat helped usher in a string of changes.

England, who have a new managing director in former batter Rob Key, have employed McCullum to bring a new spark to their test side and have moved the captaincy from Joe Root to Ben Stokes.

But the return of Anderson and Broad means it will be far from a rookie outfit to meet the

Black Caps.

Anderson, only a year younger than his new coach, made his test debut against Zimbabwe at Lord’s in May 2003.

He was part of a team which featured Key (who made 18 in his only bat in a win by an innings and 92 runs), Key’s predecessor as managing director Ashley Giles, and current commentators Nasser Hussain and Michael Vaughan.

Anderson took 5-73 in Zimbabwe’s first innings as Dion Ebrahim, the current Otago Volts coach, top-scored with 68 for Zimbabwe. Ebrahim is part of the Black Caps coaching set-up on the England tour.

To give further indication of how long Anderson has been playing test cricket, Alec Stewart, England’s wicketkeeper/batter in that test, is now 59 years old.

McCullum made his New Zealand test debut in March 2004 against South Africa in Hamilton.

Employed primarily as wicketkeeper, he batted at No 8 and made 57 from 86 balls in his only bat in the drawn game, while taking three catches behind the stumps.

Broad debuted against Sri Lanka in Colombo in December 2007, in a match which saw home team star Mahela Jayawardene make 195, while his second test came against

New Zealand at the Basin Reserve in March 2008.

England won by 126 runs, with Broad taking 1-56 and 2-62 while Anderson took seven wickets.

McCullum, now well ensconced as a Black Caps regular, made 85 from 116 balls at No 7 in New Zealand’s fruitless second innings chase for 438 to win.

Tim Southee is New Zealand’s longest-serving test player in the current squad, aged 33.

The durable swing and seam bowler made his debut versus England at Napier in March 2008, memorably taking five wickets in the first innings and thumping 77 not out off 40 balls (nine sixes and four fours) in New Zealand’s second turn at bat in their 121-run defeat.

It was a game which featured both Broad and Anderson, but they were overshadowed by first innings centurion Kevin Pietersen, and bowlers Ryan Sidebottom and Monty Panesar.

Southee has played 85 tests for New Zealand, one fewer than 31-year-old captain Kane Williamson, while Anderson has amassed 169 tests and Broad 152.

New Zealand’s oldest player in the test squad is left-arm quick Neil Wagner, who turned 36 in March but didn’t make his test debut until July 2012.

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2022-05-28T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-05-28T07:00:00.0000000Z

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