- ‘Pretty disrespectful’ – Stuart Broad condemns Lancashire over their treatment of James Anderson Stuart Broad has condemned Lancashire’s handling of James Anderson’s departure after 25 years at the county and branded the club’s decision-making process as disrespectful.
- ‘Pretty disrespectful’ – Stuart Broad criticizes Lancashire for treatment of James Anderson (Credit: Gareth Copley/) After 25 years of service with Lancashire, James Anderson was released by the county after retiring from Test cricket in 2024.
- The former England fast bowler ended his international career with 704 wickets, more than any fast bowler in the five-day format.
‘Pretty disrespectful’ – Stuart Broad condemns Lancashire over their treatment of James Anderson Stuart Broad has condemned Lancashire’s handling of James Anderson’s departure after 25 years at the county and branded the club’s decision-making process as disrespectful.
‘Pretty disrespectful’ – Stuart Broad criticizes Lancashire for treatment of James Anderson (Credit: Gareth Copley/) After 25 years of service with Lancashire, James Anderson was released by the county after retiring from Test cricket in 2024. The former England fast bowler ended his international career with 704 wickets, more than any fast bowler in the five-day format. Lancashire announced the decision not to renew Anderson’s contract, leaving the veteran cricketer dispointed that the choice was taken away from him.
Stuart Broad strongly criticized the way Lancashire communicated this decision to Anderson. On October 19, Anderson met with the club’s new management and learned that he would not be offered a new contract. Broad expressed serious concerns about how the county is handling the situation.
Broad explained his objections to Lancashire’s timetable and decision-making process. The club’s new management had informed Anderson of the non-renewal without prior notice and given them the opportunity to say a dignified farewell to the fans. Broad felt district leaders should have planned the announcement more carefully, particularly given the circumstances of Anderson’s recent departure from international cricket.
“It’s a pretty disrespectful way for Lancashire to tell him this news. He met new chief executive and new director of cricket Paul Farbrace and they said they would not offer him a new contract. That is October 19.
I understand that they are new to the role, so they couldn’t have done that in August and said: “Go say goodbye to the fans, take your last ball at Old Trafford” and something like that. But there must be leaders at this club who could have planned this,” Broad said on the For the Love of Cricket podcast. Why did Broad criticize Lancashire’s proach?
During the County Championship season, Anderson demonstrated his continued value to Lancashire by taking 50 wickets at an average of 17, earning the club’s Player of the Year award. Despite these strong individual performances, Lancashire finished second in the Division Two table and have endured a difficult period in recent seasons. Broad acknowledged the financial constraints the county faced but questioned whether Anderson’s established domestic record should have warranted different treatment.
“I understand the thought process is that they can probably find two half-decent cricketers for whoever loses that salary. They finished second in the league, had a miserable season, have been doing poorly for a few years and need to improve. “But Jimmy had 50 wickets at 17 – there aren’t many bowlers in the country who have done that, so it doesn’t surprise me that there have already been counties calling to find out how interested he is,” Broad said.
Anderson has since moved on to projects that extend beyond his Lancashire tenure. He became co-owner of a Nles-based franchise that competed in the inaugural Ligue Italia T10, launched the following month. The move marked a significant shift in his career direction after the test.
