James Anderson on England forcing him to retire: 'I wasn't angry, just felt shocked'

James Anderson made a stunning revelation on his retirement earlier this year, saying he felt like Joe Pesci’s character from Goodfellas when he met England Test captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum , only to be told that the team would be looking to move on from him.

The 42-year-old pacer had played his final Test against West Indies at Lord’s earlier this year, collecting four wickets in his farewell Test including 3/32 in the second innings to sign off with 704 Test wickets from 188 appearances to his name and nearly a 1,000 across international formats.

However, it wasn’t quite the farewell on his own terms that Anderson would have hoped for, and the Lancastrian admitted that he wasn’t angry at being shown the door by the team management instead of being part of their plans heading into next year’s Ashes Down Under.

“As I walk towards them, it hits me cold. This isn’t a team appraisal, is it? I feel like Joe Pesci in Goodfellas, ushered into a room under the impression that I’m going to get made, only to be shot,” Anderson revealed to The Guardian.

“I don’t think I was angry. I was just shocked. But, to be honest, I would have carried on for as long as my body let me. Maybe I needed that nudge to say now’s a good time to finish,” he added.

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Anderson had the opportunity to call it a day together with long-time new-ball partner Stuart Broad in last year’s home Ashes. Broad signed off from international cricket in style by collecting his 604th Test wicket of the final delivery of his career , helping England level the five-match series 2-2 with a 49-run win at The Oval.

Anderson, meanwhile, decided to continue playing in pursuit of the 700-wicket milestone and beyond and hoping to become the leading wicket-taker of all time. However, after a modest run in the tour of India earlier this year in which he collected 10 wickets at an average of 33.50, the team management decided they needed to bring a fresh face into the attack keeping next year’s Ashes in mind.

The pace legend, however, has since been welcomed back into the English men’s senior team, albeit as a bowling coach. And Anderson for one says he’s learning more about himself in his new role.

“I find it quite exciting that I’m getting to learn a different job and finding out more about myself and whether I’m any good at it. So it’s been pretty interesting and, as a coach, I can now see that the decision actually benefited the team because there’ve been more opportunities for bowlers to come in and do well,” Anderson added.