Tim Southee doubts longevity of the ‘Test seamer’ in future

GREATER NOIDA: Tim Southee is one of the legends of New Zealand cricket. With 380 wickets in 100 Tests, Southee is placed 20th in the list of highest wicket-takers in Test cricket. The top-20 comprises 13 pacers and 7 spinners.
England’s James Anderson is the most successful pacer in terms of wickets with 704 victims in a career spanning over 188 Tests. Anderson recently retired from Test cricket leaving Southee as the flag-bearer of a generation of “Test seamers”.
Southee’s new-ball partner for more than a decade, Trent Boult too recently quit international cricket.In terms of a pacer’s longevity in the longest and most challenging format of the game, only the Australian duo of Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins have endured the red-ball rigours for more than a decade now.
Southee feels with the rise and expansion of T20s, and the ODIs still having its relevance, the “Test seamer’s” longevity will be in doubt.
“I am not sure. I don’t think the world will witness another James Anderson-like career in the future. I don’t think anyone will reach the heights that Anderson has been able to reach over his career,” Southee said on Sunday, before the one-off Test against Afghanistan here.
“For me, I still love Test cricket. So, I am just excited to be back playing Tests after a bit of a break. The appetite for T20s and ODIs is increasing, but I would still like to think that there is a lot of Test cricket to be played.”
“We will have to wait and see (whether pacers of the current generation can keep playing Tests for a considerable length of time). It is tough work,” he added.