London, July 18: England pacer James Anderson has admitted that South African counterpart Dale Steyn is faster, more aggressive and more attacking than him.
Anderson versus Steyn will see a personal duel in the three-Test series that begins at the Oval tomorrow, and there is history to it too.
Steyn hit Anderson on the helmet before the Englanf pacer drove one back at him and broke his thumb during the 2008 Headingley Test, The Daily Mirror reports.
Heated words have been exchanged, while the respect comes from Steyn admitting to learning the art of swing bowling from watching Anderson operate in English conditions, and the leader of Andy Flower’s attack has also owned up to studying his counterpart.
“Steyn is a slightly different bowler to me. He is probably more aggressive and a bit quicker. He swings the ball late, is probably a bit more attacking, whereas my role is a holding job at times,” said Anderson.
“I’ve watched him many times and tried to pick things up from him. You watch the lengths he bowls, how he bowls at certain batsmen, and you try to soak up as much as you can,” he said.
“We’ve been playing really well at home. This is going to be our toughest challenge for a while but we are still confident going into it. We have the necessary weapons to be able to beat them and that’s the way we go into most series, thinking we are going to win,” Anderson added.
© ANI
