Dale Steyn commends James Anderson in emotional send-off

Former cricketer Dale Steyn attended James Anderson’s last international match during the England vs. West Indies Test. The two bowlers had a fierce rivalry and friendship throughout the 2010s, often pushing each other to improve.

After England’s impressive win by an innings and 114 runs at Lord’s, both Anderson and Steyn were emotional. Steyn took to X to congratulate Anderson on his incredible career, saying it was hard to sum up everything Anderson achieved in just a few words. He made sure to be there to see Anderson bowl one last time.

“Tough to sum up a man’s entire career in a few sentences. Bud, you have been fantastic. Thank you so much for all these years of incredible inspiration and dramatic duels we’ve had. I was there to watch today. Some things one just shouldn’t miss. Congratulations @jimmy9,” Steyn wrote on X.

In his final appearance, Anderson took four wickets, bringing his total to 704 Test wickets, just four behind the legendary Shane Warne, who has 708. Anderson is the only fast bowler in history to take over 700 wickets in Test cricket and ranks third overall in the all-time list.

Anderson also confirmed that he will stay with the national team for the rest of the summer. Although he had no plans to retire, the team management suggested it to help develop the pace attack for the Ashes 2025. Speaking about his future, Anderson expressed uncertainty about continuing but mentioned that Lancashire has kept the door open for him.