PERTH: In-form seamer James Anderson is confident the English pace attack won’t lose any of its potency in the third Ashes Test starting Thursday at the WACA Ground, despite a couple of untimely setbacks.
After their second Test triumph in Adelaide to take a 1-0 lead in the series, England can retain the Ashes with a win here, but will need to do so without fast bowler Stuart Broad, who has been ruled out of the rest of the tour with an abdominal strain.
And Anderson himself has to deal with jet lag and limited preparation, having flown across the world twice in the last week after a dash back to England for the birth of his daughter, Ruby.
The self-styled leader of the English pace attack only arrived back from England on Monday afternoon. Anderson, who claimed eight wickets in the first two Tests and produced the opening day spell which put England on the path to victory in Adelaide, said he was confident his own form wouldn’t suffer from his jaunt home. “I didn’t get into a sleep routine in England and didn’t try to acclimatise back to English conditions,” he said.
“I tried to stay on Australian time, so to speak, and I think I’ve done that well. “I had a good night’s sleep last night and I’ve got two days of preparation for the Test and I don’t see why I won’t go well.” In fact, Anderson said the brief break from a long tour could work in his favour. “I feel fresh,” he said. “I am probably happy for the rest from bowling after a tough first two Tests.”
Anderson said he was confident whichever pace bowler was called into the side to replace Broad would do a fine job, with towering Chris Tremlett expected to get the nod ahead of Tim Bresnan.
“Whoever replaces Stuart in the side, we have got three guys that are raring to go and they are all quality bowlers,” he said. “I am sure they will fill Stuart’s shoes as well as they can. “All three can do a fantastic job for us.” Anderson welcomed news that WACA curator Cam Sutherland had predicted a pitch with more of the pace and bounce for which the venue was once famous. He admitted that he found the WACA surprisingly slow in the tour opener against Western Australia last month, which England won outright in under three days. “It is nice to hear there might be some pace in the pitch and some grass left on it maybe,” he said. “If it does swing it is a nice bonus for us.”
