Anderson fornever

I'm really struggling to understand why James Anderson keeps getting selected. He's become semi-incumbent, which seems like an odd place to be. When Harmison was still a regular pick there was, for a long time, no sway from the England camp in his pick, and now he's dropped and probably never coming back, but Anderson has always been in the same position but a few rungs down the ladder, so if there's no one instantly better, it's Jimmy without a second thought.

I don't get it.

I missed his first golden boy period around 2003, but since returning after the demise of Jones et al, the only thing he's been consistent at is being inconsistent. He reliably gets pasted for 10+ on a couple of overs each day of a test and even more so in an ODI.

His figures for the NZ first innings ended up OK on paper, but then he only cleaned up the tail really, I had to have a life yesterday with Jake, but the start of the first innings he was atrocious, compared to Sidebottom being superb... And I'm happily aware of that thing about one end getting the wickets, the other being discplined to apply pressure, but that's been Sidebottom and Broad each time that's been around.

Before the series started I picked Hoggard over Anderson and was dissapointed, if Harmison hadn't crippled Hoggard I reckon we'd have had a different line up this time. I'd have still probably picked Skeletor Tremlett anyway.

But then he did perform some savage dentistry...