It took just 11 overs, stretched across an hour, before the inevitable happened on Friday at the Lord's in London. West Indies scored just 57 runs more for the loss of the final three wickets as England scripted an emphatic win by an innings and 114 runs to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. With the game ended the illustrious career of James Anderson, who picked four wickets across two innings in the match before drawing curtains on his outstanding 21-year-old Test career.

Anderson, who made his international debut in 2002, ended his career with 704 wickets in the longest format, the most-ever by a fast bowler in the history of Test cricket and the third-highest overall after Muttiah Muralidaran (800) of Sri Lanka and Australia's Shane Warne (708).

After the match, former India cricketer Sachin Tendulkar took X, formerly known as Twitter, to share an "incredible" post for the England great. He tweeted: “Hey Jimmy! You've bowled the fans over with that incredible 22-year spell. Here's a little wish as you bid goodbye. It has been a joy to watch you bowl - with that action, speed, accuracy, swing and fitness. You've inspired generations with your game. Wish you a wonderful life ahead with good health and happiness as you put those new shoes on for the most important spell of your life - the time with family.”

Tendulkar's tweet came just days after Anderson labelled him as the "best batter" he has ever faced in his international career, despite his much-famed rivalry with former India captain Virat Kohli, who managed to dominate the England fast bowler ever since he recovered from the forgettable 2014 England tour. “The best batter I would have to say is Sachin Tendulkar," Anderson told Sky Sports in a fan Q&A.

Anderson faced Tendulkar in 25 international matches, dismissing his 12 times, the joint-most against a batter alongside Shane Watson, David Warner, Cheteshwar Pujara and L Thirimane. Nine of those dismissals came in 17 meetings in the Test format.

Back in 2020, during a chat with South Africa legend Dale Steyn, Anderson was effusive in his praise for Tendulkar. He had said: “I don’t remember having a specific game plan against Sachin Tendulkar,” Anderson said. “Once he came on, I would just think that I cannot bowl a bad ball here, he was that kind of player. He was a key for India as well. If you get him out in India, the whole atmosphere, in the ground changes. He was such a big wicket.”