James Anderson could be given chance to join Surrey
James Anderson could be given the opportunity to join Surrey, the possibility reported on 5 November 2026 after he left Lancashire when the county did not offer him a new contract. Anderson has not retired and said on his Tailenders podcast: "I am starting to get excited about the future, whether it is something different or playing cricket again. It is exciting."
Anderson played 188 Tests, claiming 704 wickets, and first played professionally for Lancashire 25 years ago. He will turn 45 in July 2027, has stopped short of retirement and, in the days after his exit from Lancashire, a number of clubs from both divisions of the County Championship expressed an interest in speaking to the seamer.
Surrey are understood to have the financial means to sign Anderson and adding him would bolster a squad that includes nine players on England central contracts. Of those nine, three are frontline seamers who would be regulars around Surrey's Championship team: Gus Atkinson, Matthew Fisher and Henry Crocombe.
Crocombe is described as a new arrival from Sussex, and both Crocombe and Fisher have been given England deals for the first time. For Anderson, joining a county with Surrey's depth would present the opportunity for a managed workload and playing a relatively reduced role could perhaps avoid the need to move from his home in Cheshire.
Surrey and Lancashire are in different divisions of the County Championship, which would mean Anderson could continue playing without the prospect of coming up against his boyhood club, and the move would provide the chance to end his career with a challenge to win the County Championship. Neither Anderson's camp nor Surrey have commented.
Surrey director of cricket Alec Stewart was in the England team when Anderson made his debut in a one-day international against Australia in Melbourne in 2002. Anderson first played List A cricket in 2000 as a 17-year-old for the Lancashire Cricket Board against Suffolk.
Anderson's career totals include 911 international wickets, an England record and a record for all pace bowlers, along with 443 first-class scalps for Lancashire, 83 in List A cricket and a further 50 in T20s. Last season he was Lancashire captain as the county finished second-bottom of Division Two, yet he still collected 50 Championship wickets at an average of 17.
Speaking on Tailenders about his departure, Anderson said: "I am sad the way it ended with the club I supported as a kid, but now I have thought about it I am quite excited for the future," he said. "I am always going to support Lancashire. "I was born there, grew up watching them, had some of my most memorable days out with Dad watching them, got to play for them and captain the club, which is something most people dream about. "I feel like I have a special connection with the club and will always support them."
