James Anderson has announced he will be retiring from international cricket after England’s first Test against the West Indies in July.
Anderson, known as Jimmy, is England’s highest Test wicket-taker of all-time, having taken exactly 700, one of only three players to reach the mark, and the only seam bowler to do so.
“It’s been an incredible 20 years representing my country, playing the game I’ve loved since I was a kid”, he said in a statement on Instagram.
“I’m going to miss walking out for England so much. But I know the time is right to step aside and let others realise their dreams just like I got to, because there is no greater feeling.”
Anderson, 41, thanked “everyone who has supported me over the years”.
“It’s always meant a lot, even if my face often doesn’t show it,” he added.
Anderson took his 700th in his most recent outing against India in Dharamsala in March.
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He has decided to call time on his Test career after talks with England head coach Brendon McCullum, who wants to modify his side’s seam attack and build towards the future with one eye on the 2025-26 Ashes.
The Lancashire bowler has played an English record 187 Test matches, after making his debut in 2003.
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In all, he has bowled almost 40,000 deliveries, an astonishing figure for a Test quick bowler, but, perhaps inevitably, his figures have slipped and in the last 12 months, he has taken only 15 wickets in eight Test matches.
He would need nine more wickets to move above Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne’s 708 dismissals and become the second-highest Test wicket-taker of all time. Another spinner, Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan, leads the pack with 800 wickets.
Often described as the best swing bowler in the history of the sport, Anderson was in the England squad that won the 2010 T-20 World Cup and the England side that reached the 2013 Champions Trophy final.
Across all international formats, including T-20s and One-Day Internationals (ODIs), he has taken 987 wickets in 400 matches.
His 269 ODI wickets is an English record. He played in 194 ODIs and 19 T20s before his international white-ball career ended in 2015.
That was the year he overtook Sir Ian Botham’s 383 dismissals to become England’s record Test wicket-taker and three years later, he overhauled Australian Glenn McGrath’s total of 563 Test wickets to become the most prolific fast bowler of all time.
His long-time bowling partner Stuart Broad retired last summer, but Anderson decided not to join him.
Instead, he carried on to play in four of England’s five Tests in the 4-1 defeat in India earlier this year.
In 2011, he was awarded the Freedom of the Borough of Burnley, where he was born and raised. Four years later, he was made an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours “for services to cricket”.
A man has been arrested after a woman in her 80s was killed in a Christmas Day motorway crash.
A white Ford Fiesta and a black Volkswagen Tiguan collided on the A1(M) near Darlington just after 8.30pm, North Yorkshire Police said.
The passenger of the Ford Fiesta, a woman in her 80s from the Durham area, suffered serious injuries and died at the scene.
The car’s driver, a man in his 80s from the Durham area, was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition.
The driver of the Volkswagen, a man in his 20s from the Durham area, was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.
He has now been released under investigation.
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The motorway was closed until around 8am on Boxing Day for collision investigators and National Highways to assess the road surface.
It is now open in both directions but with a lane closure still in place as of 9.30am.
Police have appealed for witnesses and dashcam footage of the crash, which happened on the northbound carriageway between Junction 57 (A66(M) junction) and Junction 58 (Merrybent).
The force also thanked members of the public who assisted at the scene.
Two women have died following reports of a stabbing in Milton Keynes on Christmas Day, police have said.
A dog injured in the incident in Bletchley also died after being taken to the vets.
A man and a teenage boy suffered serious injuries.
A 49-year-old man from Milton Keynes has been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder and remains in custody.
Officers were called to a block of apartments in Santa Cruz Avenue just after 6.30pm on Christmas Day following reports of a stabbing.
The two women, aged 38 and 24, died at the scene, Thames Valley Police said. Their next of kin have been informed.
The injured man and teenage boy were taken to hospital and are both in a stable condition.
Police said the parties are known to each other.
Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Brangwin said: “Firstly I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the families of the women who have tragically died in this shocking incident.
“We have launched a double murder investigation, which may be concerning to the wider public; however, we have made an arrest and are not looking for anyone else in connection with this incident and the parties are known to each other.”
A man has been charged with murdering a woman whose body was found nine days after she went missing.
Police said extensive searches and appeals were launched to find Mariann Borocz after she vanished on 14 December.
Her body was discovered at a property in Bolton, Greater Manchester, on Christmas Eve.
Christopher Barlow, 61, from Bolton, has been charged with her murder and has been remanded in custody ahead of an appearance before magistrates on Thursday.
Greater Manchester Police said Ms Borocz’s family are being supported by specialist officers.
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Detective Chief Inspector Tony Platten thanked those who spoke to officers and shared the missing person appeals.
“On behalf of the entire investigation team, our condolences remain with Mariann’s family as they try to come to terms with her death,” he said.
“Our investigation is moving at pace, and we are continuing to work hard to build a full timeline of events leading up to Mariann’s death.
“As part of our investigation, we are once again appealing for additional information from the local community.”