Broad, Anderson eye one last Ashes tilt before retirement

LONDON (Agencies): England’s new ball pair of James Anderson and Stuart Broad have their eyes on the 2021-22 Ashes series in Australia before they consider retirement, the duo have said.

Anderson, England’s highest test wicket-taker, will be 38 in July while Broad, second in that list and four years younger, does not expect his career to last as long as that of his bowling partner.

“I don’t think I could go until your age,” Broad told Anderson during an Instagram Live chat. “Your action’s so smooth, it looks a lot calmer on your body whereas mine is a little more forceful through my body I think.”

“But I’m loving the environment at the minute. I love playing for England.”

“I still have huge motivation to keep playing and you just assess that year by year. And we’ve got that carrot dangling over us of Australia in Australia which looks like an achievable carrot to grab.”

Anderson felt if he could stay fit and perform at the same level, there was no reason why he could not join England’s bid to reclaim the Ashes.

“The big thing is standards. If your standards feel like they’re dropping then yeah you might consider finishing,” Anderson said.

“But as long as my standards stay high, my fitness levels stay good and my skills stay where I want them to be and my speed stays pretty good which they have been (I’ll keep playing).”