Jimmy Anderson registers for the Hundred Draft at the ripe young age of 42 as he’s hoping for his first deal in the competition.
Jimmy Anderson wants to play in the Hundred this summer and has registered his name for next week’s draft.
Since his last Test match against the West Indies in July of last year, Anderson has not played professionally. This winter, he has been serving as a consultant coach for England, including at the Champions Trophy. However, he is now aiming for his first Hundred appearance after agreeing to a one-year deal with Lancashire in January to cover the 2025 season.
Anderson aspires to play in the T20 Blast for Lancashire this year, even though it has been almost six years since he last played white-ball cricket and more than ten years since his previous T20 outing. Without a reserve price, Anderson joined the draft, which is scheduled for March 12. If he does not find a replacement for an injury or wildcard, he may still be included in the Hundred.
Anderson remarked at the time, “Watching the Hundred this year, seeing the ball swing around, it makes me feel like I could do a job there,” after the group of balls used in the Hundred last summer moved wildly off the seam and through the air. He even signed up for the IPL auction in December, but it didn’t sell.
If Anderson plays this year, he will turn 43 just before the Hundred begins on August 5 and will be the second-oldest player in the competition behind Imran Tahir (in 2022). Faf du Plessis will be 41 when he plays for Southern Brave this season, and Wayne Madsen and Michael Hogan have also made Hundred appearances in their 40s.
Ten positions among the men’s hundred teams will be up for grabs among the more than 300 male overseas players who have registered for the draft; 14 of them have already been retained or immediately recruited.
Despite an impending white-ball series against South Africa in August, Australians Glenn Maxwell, Nathan Ellis, and Josh Inglis all registered for the draft. David Warner, who has retired from international cricket, has also done so. With Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, and Rachin Ravindra all enrolled for the draft, New Zealand’s players should be available for most of the Hundred.
Rehan Ahmed, Zak Crawley, George Garton, Lewis Gregory, Dan Lawrence, David Payne, Reece Topley, David Willey, and Luke Wood are some other recent England internationals who are anticipated to draw interest. The longlist also includes a number of recent England Under-19 players, such as Archie Vaughan, Ben McKinney, Harry Moore, and Rocky Flintoff.