James Anderson: Stuart Broad blasts Lancashire’s ‘disrespectful’ decision to not renew ex-England bowler contract | Cricket News

Stuart Broad has blasted Lancashire’s decision to not renew James Anderson’s contract as “disrespectful”.

The Red Rose county opted against offering him a new deal for 2027 despite the 44-year-old having a strong season in which he took 50 wickets at an average of 17 amid their struggles in Division Two of the County Championship.

Anderson released a statement on social media which confirmed his Lancashire departure was not what he wanted and that if it was up to him, it “would not have ended like this”.

For Broad, while he understands there has been a change of leadership at Lancashire, he believes the decision has been handled badly by those at the top.

“It is a pretty disrespectful way for Lancashire to deliver that news to him,” Broad said on the For the Love of Cricket podcast.

“He met with the new chief executive and the new director of cricket Paul Farbrace and they said they would not be offering him a new contract.

“That is October 19. I get that they are new in the role so they could not have done that in August and said, ‘sign off, give the fans your goodbye, have your last bowl at Old Trafford’, all that sort of stuff.

“But there must be some leadership within that club that could have planned that.

“I get that the thought process is probably they can get two half-decent cricketers for the one with losing that salary.

“They have finished second bottom of the Championship, had a woeful season, they have been poor for a few years, and they need to improve.

“But Jimmy got 50 wickets at 17 – there are not many bowlers in the country that did that so it does not surprise me that there have already been some counties on the phone to see what his interest levels are.”

Broad also found it intriguing that in his statement, Anderson did not immediately retire and would not be surprised if he is weighing up other options.

Not only that, he was firm that if Anderson wanted one more year with Lancashire, they should have just found a way to make it happen.

“I don’t know what is next for him. His statement was quite interesting because he didn’t retire,” he added.

“He might look at other options. He still offers a lot and a lot of counties would want him. He is still one of the best bowlers in the country.

“I didn’t like it from Lancashire to be honest. I thought it was not done in the right way, I thought it was disrespectful.

“You give your icons and your greats of the game a better sign-off and send-off than that. It shows a lack of leadership at the club.

“Where is the chair and the board demanding that this is done in a better way?

“I feel uneasy, I feel uncomfortable about it. If Jimmy Anderson wants to play another year when he has taken 50 wickets at 17 then you find a way to do that.”

Anderson is England’s highest Test wicket-taker and the most prolific fast bowler in the history of the game, taking 704 wickets in 188 matches before exiting the international stage in 2024.

His departure from the England Test set-up was also not Anderson’s choice, with then head coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes deciding he was not in their plans going forward.

Farbrace explains Anderson decision

Farbrace, Lancashire’s incoming director of cricket, said: “Jimmy is without doubt the greatest bowler Lancashire and England have produced. He has been a fantastic competitor throughout his career, with exceptional skill and an unwavering commitment to setting the highest standards in every dressing room he has been part of.

“Following a meeting with Jimmy and Richard Kenyon [Lancashire’s new chief executive] at Emirates Old Trafford on Monday October 19, I spoke to Jimmy about our ambitions to rebuild our men’s squad that is capable of securing promotion from Division Two of the County Championship and then challenging to win Division One over the next three to four years.

“We are keen to begin that rebuild now, both in terms of the playing squad and the wider professional cricket set-up, and to make important progress over the coming months. As part of those plans, I informed Jimmy that we had taken the incredibly difficult decision not to extend his playing contract for the 2027 season.

“I would like to thank Jimmy for everything he has given to Lancashire Cricket over the course of his career. His contribution to the club has been immense, both on and off the field, and he leaves a lasting legacy. We have enormous respect for what he has achieved, and we will always be proud that he has represented Lancashire for so many years.”