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James Anderson has taken over half his Test wickets

Anderson was already 30 years old when Strauss retired, approaching an age when most fast bowlers would start to wind down.

Instead, he has gone on to claim another 299 wickets – more than half his Test haul – to become the greatest fast bowler in the history of the sport.

Stuart Broad has been busy

Anderson’s opening bowling partner has also found a way to fill the time.

Broad saved a man from committing suicide in 2014, topped FPL fantasy charts for a week in 2017 and has twice dated The Saturdays star Mollie King, not to mention adding another 272 Test wickets to his tally.

England’s ODI team go full circle

Three years after Strauss’ retirement came England’s lowest ebb – a World Cup group-stage exit at the hands of Bangladesh.

Four years later and England are world champions for the first time, yet still no closer to solving their Test opener quandary.

Ben Stokes’ redemption

Stokes has been involved in a brawl outside a nightclub, charged with affray, banned for eight games, acquitted by a jury, returned to the international fold and become a national hero in about a quarter of the time since England last had a solid opening partnership.

Just let that sink in.

Ball-tampering scandal

Australia have also seen players recover from rock bottom after the ball-tampering trio of Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft were found guilty of bringing the game into disrepute, banned for up to a year, stripped of their leadership positions and responsible for a review into team culture.

Annoyingly, all have now returned to sure up the Aussies’ top order just in time for the Ashes.

The rise of Joe Root

Root had not even made his international debut when Strauss retired, but is now in charge of picking up the pieces as England Test captain.

His journey from baby-faced novice to the country's best batsman has been tough at times, but Root has still managed to find time for a side hustle in mattress sales. 

The Hundred

Who knows, maybe cricket as we know it will have disappeared by the time England find another solid opening pair?

After the meltdown that has followed the ECB’s announcement of the new hundred-ball format, don’t rule it out.

T20 has continued to thrive

The biggest criticism of The Hundred is that it is innovation for innovation’s sake, with T20 cricket still thriving around the world.

The establishment of eight major international T20 tournaments since 2012 proves that people haven’t tired of the product yet.

Ireland and Afghanistan handed Test status

Such limited-over dominance means Test cricket is on the wane, though the longest format still remains the pinnacle for many.

Just ask Ireland and Afghanistan, who, in 2018, became the first countries to be handed full Test status in 18 years. 

Boyd Rankin’s England adventure

In the same month that Strauss retired, Ireland international Rankin announced his intention to switch allegiances to England.

He made his debut 10 months later, playing seven ODIs, two T20Is and a solitary Ashes Test before returning to play for the country of his birth in 2015.

Jofra Archer goes from Windies outcast to England hero

Similarly, in 2014, a young Barbadian had just set his sights on the England team after being left out of the West Indies squad for the U19 Cricket World Cup.

Five years and one super over later, Archer is set to play in his first Ashes series as an English cricketing icon.

Mark Butcher has released two albums

“Get in, hit it hard, get out.” That’s how former England batsman Mark Butcher approached his second studio album ‘Now Playing’, released in July 2019.

Unfortunately, England’s string of replacements for Strauss and Cook have only fully embraced the last part of that approach.

Shane Warne’s new head of hair

The rebirth of Warne’s hair has been a sight to behold over the years, made all the more enjoyable by a couple of toe-curling adverts.

Here’s hoping he hasn’t lost those luscious locks all over again by the time England settle on a new opening pair.

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