Stuart Broad has slammed Lancashire over their treatment of James Anderson, calling the county “pretty disrespectful” for ending the legendary bowler’s 26-year career at the club without a proper send-off. Broad, Anderson’s long-time England bowling partner, spoke out on the For The Love of Cricket podcast after Anderson was told last week that his contract would not be renewed.
Stuart Broad and James Anderson (Credits: BBC Sport)
Stuart Broad Calls Lancashire Treatment of James Anderson Disrespectful
Anderson, 44, took 50 wickets in the County Championship last season and even served as captain, yet incoming director of cricket Paul Farbrace has decided to rebuild the struggling side without England’s all-time leading wicket-taker. Lancashire finished second bottom in Division Two of the County Championship, and Farbrace wants a fresh start for the future.
“I didn’t like it from Lancashire,” Broad said. “It was not done in the right way. I think it was disrespectful. You give your icons or greats of the game a better send off than that.”
Farbrace, who moved from Sussex at the end of the season, has not yet officially started in his new role, but he delivered the news to Anderson at a meeting last week alongside chief executive Richard Kenyon, who has also recently been appointed. The news was first reported on Wednesday, yet Lancashire did not comment officially until Sunday, and at a meeting with members on Monday the club said it would look into arranging Anderson a farewell.
Broad Questions Lancashire Leadership Over James Anderson Exit
Broad did not hold back on the club’s leadership either. “It shows a lack of leadership at that club,” he said. “Paul Farbrace is new, but where is the chair? Where is the board demanding that this is done in a better way?”
Together, Broad and Anderson took a record 1,039 Test wickets in 138 Tests, forming one of the greatest bowling partnerships in cricket history. Broad retired after the 2023 Ashes, while Anderson’s England career was also cut short in 2024 in similar circumstances, making this latest exit feel painfully familiar.
Speaking publicly for the first time since the decision on Sunday, Anderson expressed his sadness but stopped short of retiring, and other counties are already understood to be interested in signing the veteran. “I get the thought process, ‘we could probably get two half-decent cricketers for the one and losing that salary’,” Broad added. “It doesn’t surprise me that some counties have already been on the phone. He’s still one of the best bowlers in the country.”
Also Read: James Anderson Breaks Silence on Lancashire Exit, Stops Short of Retiring as Other Counties Circle
Source: BBC Sport — read the full story there.
