Rain interrupts Anderson’s quest for 600th Test wicket, gives Pak another day to survive

James Anderson grabbed his 599th Test wicket as England remained in the driver’s seat against Pakistan who reached 100/2 following on at stumps on the rain-hit Day 4 of the third and final Test at the Ageas Bowl on Monday.

 Looking to become the first pace bowler to take 600 Test wickets, Anderson trapped Abid Ali (42) in front to snare his 599th wicket before bad light forced skipper Joe Root to resort to spin, as off-spinner Dom Bess and the England captain bowled the last few overs before play was abandoned.

Only spin legends Muttiah Muralitharan (800) of Sri Lanka, Australia’s Shane Warne (708) and India’s Anil Kumble (619) have more wickets than Anderson in the game’s longest format.

England asked Pakistan to follow on after the tourists managed 273 in reply to hosts’ mammoth 583/8d in the first essay, riding on a maiden double century by Zak Crawley and a brilliant hundred by Jos Buttler.

At the close of play on Day 4, skipper Azhar Ali, who scored a gritty 141 in the first innings, and Babar Azam were at the crease on 29 and 4, respectively.

 Openers Abid Ali and Shan Masood shared a 49- run stand before Masood was trapped in front by Stuart Broad. Anderson then sent Ali back as Pakistan remained 210 runs in arrears.

 Anderson, who returned figures of 5/56 in the first innings, and could have had at least three more wickets had catches not been dropped off his bowling on Day 3, saw wicketkeeper Jos Buttler drop yet another catch off his bowling in the first session on Monday.

Stuart Broad is the only contemporary of James Anderson who has surpassed the mark of scalping 500 test wickets for the test side in the history of English Cricket.

There’s a forecast that threatens a washout tomorrow, and amid the concerns of the pandemic it won’t be possible to tell when the next Test’s set to be held, and there’s England’s all-time greatest bowler sleeping overnight on 599 wickets with a possibility of never getting to 600 in 2020.

 Brief scores: England 583/8d vs Pakistan 273 & 41/2 (Azhar Ali 29 batting, Babar Azam 4 batting; James Anderson 1/18, Stuart Broad 1/23)