<p>Sri Lanka great Kumar Sangakkara believes England's James Anderson may have set a record that will be "Jimmy's alone" after he became the first paceman to take 600 Test wickets.</p>.<p>Anderson, 38, made history when he had Pakistan captain Azhar Ali caught at slip by England skipper Joe Root in the drawn third Test at Southampton on Tuesday.</p>.<p>MCC president Sangakkara, in an email to club members published Saturday, said Anderson's feat was a "joyful moment for the ages" and "an exceptional achievement".</p>.<p>"Jimmy is a fast bowler of immense skill and determination," added the 42-year-old Sangakkara, a former Sri Lanka captain.</p>.<p>"His achievement is tremendous, not just for the fact that it is 600 wickets, but also for what that entails in terms of effort, commitment and reinvention."</p>.<p>The only bowlers ahead of Anderson in the all-time list of Test wicket-takers are three retired spinners -- Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan (800), Australia's Shane Warne (708) and India's Anil Kumble (619).</p>.<p>And of the three other fast bowlers to have taken more than 500 Test wickets, only Anderson's longstanding England new-ball colleague Stuart Broad (514 wickets), is still an active cricketer, with Australia's Glenn McGrath (563) and West Indies' Courtney Walsh (519) having long since hung up their boots.</p>.<p><strong>Also read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/opinion/600-and-swinging-james-anderson-s-ascent-to-pace-peak-878508.html" target="_blank">600 and swinging: James Anderson’s ascent to pace peak</a></strong></p>.<p>"He has set a record for current and future pace bowlers to chase, but it may just be one record that will be Jimmy's and Jimmy's alone," said Sangakkara, a former wicketkeeper-batsman who appeared in 134 Tests and was Sri Lanka's captain when they lost the 2011 World Cup final to India in Mumbai.</p>.<p>"It was my great privilege to play against him and I now share with you the enjoyment of watching him from beyond the boundary rope for as long as he may continue."</p>.<p>Sangakkara is the first overseas president in the 233-year-old history of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the owners of London's Lord's cricket ground.</p>.<p>By tradition, MCC presidents serve for just one year.</p>.<p>But with no internationals being played at Lord's, 'the home of cricket' in 2020 because of Covid-19 -- Saturday will see the ground's first match of the season when Middlesex play Kent in an English domestic Twenty20 -- Sangakkara's time in office has been extended by 12 months.</p>.<p>"I would like to thank you (the MCC membership) for your support in granting an extension to my term as president," Sangakkara wrote in acknowledgement.</p>
<p>Sri Lanka great Kumar Sangakkara believes England's James Anderson may have set a record that will be "Jimmy's alone" after he became the first paceman to take 600 Test wickets.</p>.<p>Anderson, 38, made history when he had Pakistan captain Azhar Ali caught at slip by England skipper Joe Root in the drawn third Test at Southampton on Tuesday.</p>.<p>MCC president Sangakkara, in an email to club members published Saturday, said Anderson's feat was a "joyful moment for the ages" and "an exceptional achievement".</p>.<p>"Jimmy is a fast bowler of immense skill and determination," added the 42-year-old Sangakkara, a former Sri Lanka captain.</p>.<p>"His achievement is tremendous, not just for the fact that it is 600 wickets, but also for what that entails in terms of effort, commitment and reinvention."</p>.<p>The only bowlers ahead of Anderson in the all-time list of Test wicket-takers are three retired spinners -- Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan (800), Australia's Shane Warne (708) and India's Anil Kumble (619).</p>.<p>And of the three other fast bowlers to have taken more than 500 Test wickets, only Anderson's longstanding England new-ball colleague Stuart Broad (514 wickets), is still an active cricketer, with Australia's Glenn McGrath (563) and West Indies' Courtney Walsh (519) having long since hung up their boots.</p>.<p><strong>Also read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/opinion/600-and-swinging-james-anderson-s-ascent-to-pace-peak-878508.html" target="_blank">600 and swinging: James Anderson’s ascent to pace peak</a></strong></p>.<p>"He has set a record for current and future pace bowlers to chase, but it may just be one record that will be Jimmy's and Jimmy's alone," said Sangakkara, a former wicketkeeper-batsman who appeared in 134 Tests and was Sri Lanka's captain when they lost the 2011 World Cup final to India in Mumbai.</p>.<p>"It was my great privilege to play against him and I now share with you the enjoyment of watching him from beyond the boundary rope for as long as he may continue."</p>.<p>Sangakkara is the first overseas president in the 233-year-old history of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the owners of London's Lord's cricket ground.</p>.<p>By tradition, MCC presidents serve for just one year.</p>.<p>But with no internationals being played at Lord's, 'the home of cricket' in 2020 because of Covid-19 -- Saturday will see the ground's first match of the season when Middlesex play Kent in an English domestic Twenty20 -- Sangakkara's time in office has been extended by 12 months.</p>.<p>"I would like to thank you (the MCC membership) for your support in granting an extension to my term as president," Sangakkara wrote in acknowledgement.</p>