[Pictures] James Anderson tries his hand in Major League Baseball ahead of second Ashes Test
England ace pacer James Anderson tried his hand in Major League Baseball (MLB) ahead of the second Ashes Test on Saturday, June 24. The 40-year-old supported Chicago Cubs against the St. Louis Cardinals at the London Stadium during MLB World Tour in Europe.
Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon also accompanied Anderson to the stadium. The veteran pacer can be seen wearing a Cubs jersey. In multiple pictures, the duo was snapped throwing the balls at batters.
Sharing the images on Instagram, Anderson captioned the post:
“Great night at the baseball. Thanks @mlbeurope for asking me to throw the first pitch. Loved it.”
As far as the match is concerned, the Cubs beat the Cardinals 9-1. In the next game, the Cardinals beat Cubs 7-5 on Sunday, as the Europe tour ended in just two days.
“More aggressive, more entertaining” – James Anderson on England’s Bazball approach ahead of second Ashes Test
James Anderson has promised that England will stick to their fearless brand of cricket despite losing the first Ashes Test by two wickets in a thriller. Speaking to reporters at the London Stadium, he said:
“I think we’ll go more positive, more aggressive, more entertaining. We want to try and make sure people go home as they did each day at Edgbaston.”
He continued:
“Just because we’re 1-0 down, I don’t think we’ll try anything different. I think we showed enough last week to show we can win the next four if we keep playing like that and iron a few things out. We’ll go exactly the same.”
Anderson, who managed a solitary wicket in the first Ashes Test, will be looking to bounce back strongly in the second Ashes Test as Ben Stokes-led England aim to level the five-match series 1-1.
Meanwhile, Nathan Lyon, who shared a match-winning partnership with Australian captain Pat Cummins for the ninth wicket on Day 5, said:
“It was an absolutely incredible Test win and to be able to play a part in that was extremely special. It is going to go down as one of the best Test matches, I’ve played in.”
Top 9th wkt partnerships in successful chases in Tests:
81 - Laxman & Ishant v Aus, Mohali 2010
61* - Dujon & Benjamin v Pak, Bridgetown 1988
56* - Cotter & Hazlitt v Eng, SCG 1907
55* - CUMMINS & LYON v Eng, Edgbaston 2023
54 - Lara & Ambrose v Aus, Bridgetown 1999
#Ashes23 https://t.co/9d1AuZYNR9
Lyon will look to become eighth player and third Australian after Shane Warne (768) and Glenn McGrath (563) to complete his 500 Test wickets. The 35-year-old has, so far, scalped 495 wickets in 121 Tests.
The second Ashes Test will be played at Lord's in London from Wednesday, June 28.