James Anderson's admits: "I struggle to recall having two consecutive quiet games in a major series"

England's James Anderson, a seasoned fast bowler, has opened up about his recent struggles in the Ashes series.

England finds themselves in a precarious position in the Ashes series as they have suffered defeats in the first two games. In order to keep the series competitive, they must secure a victory in the upcoming third Test at Headingley. James Anderson, the experienced England fast bowler, has endured a challenging series thus far. In the opening Test in Birmingham, he managed to claim just one wicket while conceding 109 runs. Similarly, in the second Test at Lord's, he took two wickets but gave away 117 runs. Despite his disappointing performance, the 181-Test veteran candidly admits that his struggle is not a result of his age.

"I will be honest. You want to contribute in the big series and I cannot remember having two such quiet games in a row for at least the past 10 years. I feel like I have always contributed at some stage. But I do not think I am bowling particularly badly; I am just going through a lean patch, which you do not want to happen in an Ashes," said James Anderson 

"It comes with the territory at my age for people to speculate about my future. I am saying lean patch but it is only two games out of 181. But I understand. It is a high-profile series and you get put under the spotlight a bit more and the easy target is to say he is getting on a bit. But the reason I have not taken wickets is not because of my age.

"I am not thinking about the future. The future for me is just thinking about Thursday and the start of the next Test. That is as far ahead as I will look. I have said it before, even when doing well, that I do not look too far ahead. I will just try to work as hard as I can before Thursday. If I get the nod, I will put in a performance the team need. If not, I will keep working hard and play a role at some stage across the series."

The third Ashes Test is set to begin on Thursday, 6th of July 2023.