Jimmy Anderson- another cricketing legend.

Jimmy Anderson- another cricketing legend.

They must have been roaring their approval all the way from the pubs and clubs of Burnley in the very heart of industrial Lancashire. The subject of their admiration would certainly have been Jimmy Anderson, surely one of the finest, greatest and most stylish of fast bowlers ever to pull on an England cricket side. Compliments and eulogies have already poured out of every location where cricket is the only source of any discussion.

Yesterday Anderson became the first bowler to reach 600 wickets taken in Test matches, a landmark so astonishing they'll have to say it twice because it probably doesn't get any better for both the Lancashire paceman or English cricket. 600 Test wickets, by any stretch of the imagination, is quite the most astonishing feat ever achieved by any English cricketer but it happened and what a feeling it must have been for the fanatically dedicated and wonderfully professional Anderson.

The facts of England's final Test series against Pakistan are that England drew the game but have still claimed a 1-0 victory over the opposition against an almost unreal Southampton backdrop of nothing and nobody. Occasionally you would hear the intermittent clapping of the two teams players and management staff but then you were reminded of performing seals and did your utmost to hold back your incredulity.

In one of the highest-scoring of the three-Test matches England compiled a monumentally remarkable total of 583-8 declared and set Pakistan an almost impossibly daunting task. The visitors, who briefly threatened an exhibition of world-class cricket in the second Test, were crushed and trampled upon by both Anderson and Stuart Broad, both now established veterans of the cricket fraternity.

You were delighted for both men because the chances are that younger players are champing at the bit for England and this could be the twilight of their careers. Their days of course are not numbered but the aches and pains, tweaks and pulls of ageing limbs might be taking their toll on both Anderson and Broad. But this has been an excellent summer for England with their equally as impressive dismantling of the West Indies already under their belts.

With stubble on his chin and shirt soaked with whole-hearted commitment and endeavour, Anderson has powered his way into the crease of  156 Test matches for England, a force of nature. The now tired feet have trundled towards batsman like one of those old fashioned steam engines rushing through the Pennines and then scattering the bails and wickets of a thousand batsmen.

Anderson has been both controlled and immensely disciplined, a bowler of meticulous accuracy and a devastating impact. At times it was rather like watching his glorious predecessor Ian Botham ripping through the Aussies batting attack almost 40 years ago when Australia must have been fantasising about another Ashes victory in England.

Anderson will obviously cast his mind back to all of those Hall of Fame fast bowlers who have so frequently terrorised the opposition. There was Ian Botham, all stocky aggression and wild-eyed hostility, Bob Willis, dogged and determined, Jon Snow and Chris Old, careful and calculating but always accurate. Then there was Freddie Truman, a Yorkshireman who always seemed to be on the warpath even as he trotted out of a pavilion on an English summer's day. Shirt billowing in the wind, sleeves rolled up for action, Truman was both unstoppable and unplayable, hurling the ball out of his hands like the proverbial missile or catapult.

But yesterday was Anderson's day and Burnley's prodigal son just couldn't hold himself back. The broad smile lit up his face and the congratulations flooded in from all and sundry. Anderson and his captain Joe Root slapped hands, jigged jubilantly and then probably celebrated this golden moment with a quiet pint of something very rewarding. You could never deny either Anderson or Root that very precious moment in a cricketer's career when the summit has been reached and the flag planted.

Out on the pitch of course England were already demonstrating the future of English cricket. Zak Crawley was piling up a veritable stack of runs, completing his double century in no time at all. Eventually Crawley reached 267, cracking the ball destructively to all areas of Southampton, smashing and battering the ball for a pretty procession of fours and sixes that left Pakistan longing for a quick plane home just to take a breather.

Then there was the able accompaniment of Jos Buttler, wicketkeeper supreme, who just threw caution to the wind and ignored convention with a stunning 152. England were now home and hosed, high fiving each other at the end and ready to be unleashed for another winter series in Australia and we all know what that means. Icy if good-natured stares will be fixed at each other, the burning fires of animosity will doubtlessly be in the air and of course there will be no love lost between the two.

But this was the day that Jimmy Anderson must have been dreaming about ever since he made his debut for Lancashire at the tender age of 17. Anderson though has never been one to attract the more unsavoury headlines and the sense is that even at 38 age is not an insurmountable barrier. If the appetite for more wickets is still there then so be it. We will take our imaginary hat off to you  Jimmy Anderson. English cricket salutes you so take another bow.