Jimmy Anderson becomes 1st fast bowler to take 600 test wickets
Southampton: Jimmy Anderson has entered the exclusive 600 Club. The England paceman became only the fourth bowler and the first seamer to take 600 wickets in test cricket on Tuesday by dismissing Azhar Ali in the third test against Pakistan.
After England captain Joe Root took the high catch at first slip off the Pakistan captain to give Anderson his prized wicket, the 38-year-old fast bowler was mobbed by his teammates.
Then Anderson took the ball in his right hand and with a cheeky smile saluted all sides of the Rose Bowl, which is without spectators because of coronavirus restrictions. England coach Chris Silverwood applauded on the boundary edge.
Anderson, who is playing in his 156th test, is fourth on the list of all-time leading wicket-takers in tests. Only retired spinners Muttiah Muralitharan (800), Shane Warne (708) and Anil Kumble (619) are above him.
Massive effort from a great fast bowler, Kumble, the former India legspinner, wrote on Twitter. Welcome to the club. Anderson is the second quickest to get to 600 wickets, taking six balls more than Muralitharan, but it could have come much sooner.
He was dropped four times in 37 balls either side of Pakistan's overnight change of innings between Days 3 and 4 of the final test of the series.
He took his 599th wicket that of Abid Ali near the end of Monday's play, before bad light stopped play.
The first two sessions of Tuesday were washed out, raising doubts about whether Anderson would miss his chance. However, play started late in the afternoon and Anderson took the wicket of Azhar off his 14th delivery.
The enduring Anderson shows no sign of slowing down, especially when he bowls on home soil where he is so adept at taking advantage of English conditions. He is still widely regarded as the best bowler in the world when the ball is swinging.
On Sunday, he took his 29th five-wicket haul of a test career that began in 2003. His average is 26.82.
Not playing white-ball cricket since 2015 has allowed him to focus his energy and fitness toward the test format. The extended break to the cricket season because of the pandemic gave Anderson more time to rest his aging body after an injury-plagued period that restricted him to just 74 overs of bowling from the opening Ashes test in August last year until this summer.
Just this month, Anderson said he has no plans to retire and has his sights set on an Ashes series Down Under next year.
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Seven killed, three injured in separate road accidents in UP
Mainpuri/Muzaffarnagar/Deoria (UP) (PTI): Seven people were killed and three others injured in separate road accidents in Mainpuri, Muzaffarnagar and Deoria districts of Uttar Pradesh, police said on Wednesday.
All incidents took place on Tuesday night.
In Mainpuri, three persons, including a couple, were killed near the Shitala Devi Temple on Devi Road under Kotwali police circle when a pickup vehicle hit a motorcycle head-on, Superintendent of Police Ganesh Saha said.
The victims, Dharmendra Singh (50), his wife Baby (48), both residents of Ferozabad, and Sanjay Singh (40) of Tavepur village, were on the two-wheeler and were on their way to attend the cremation of a relative when the incident took place.
According to police, the pickup and a Wagon R car were attempting to overtake each other when the former went out of control and rammed into the motorcycle, killing all three riders on the spot. Police rushed to the scene and sent the bodies for post-mortem examination, Saha added.
In Muzaffarnagar's Charthawal town, a 30-year-old woman, identified as Imrana, was killed while another woman was injured after a speeding car hit them on Rajbaha Road.
Circle Officer Ravishankar said the victims were walking when the car struck them, throwing Imrana into a canal. She was declared dead by the doctors.
Following the incident, villagers staged a protest demanding action against the driver, who fled the spot without the vehicle. Police said efforts are underway to trace and arrest the accused.
In another incident in Deoria district, three persons were killed, and two others seriously injured when a car crashed into a tree in the Baghochghat area late Tuesday night, police said.
The accident occurred near Haji Market when a Bihar-registered Swift car coming from Pakaha went out of control and rammed into a roadside tree, leaving the vehicle badly mangled.
Police said five people were travelling in the car. Three of them died on the spot, while two injured persons were admitted to Maharshi Devaraha Baba Medical College in Deoria.
The deceased have been identified as Karan Kushwaha, a resident of Gopalganj district in Bihar, and Pintu Kumar of Dulharpur village under Phulwaria police station. The identity of the third deceased is yet to be established.
The injured have been identified as Govind Kushwaha (18) of Sisai village in Kushinagar and Bhola Srivastava alias Sonu (22). Police said the occupants had visited a relative's place in Kushinagar and were returning after attending a wedding function when the accident occurred.
Station House Officer Anil Tiwari said police had to use a gas cutter to rescue the victims trapped inside the vehicle.
The bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination, and further legal proceedings are underway, he added.
