Beefy hits Anderson for six - poll

17 April 2015 10:31

James Anderson may be on the brink of breaking Sir Ian Botham's England Test wickets record but the 59-year-old has hit the younger man for six in a new poll.

Anderson needs just a couple more wickets to overtake Botham's total of 383, but a nationwide poll conducted by Usurv shows that 49.2 per cent of those questioned thought Botham was the greatest of the two, with just 10.9 per cent backing the 32-year-old. Almost as many - 7.5 per cent - felt neither man should be regarded as England's finest.

As you might expect, Anderson received the greatest support from respondents at the younger end of the age spectrum, with 15.2 per cent of 18 to 29-year-olds choosing the Lancashire paceman. However, more than double that number in the youngest category - 31.9 per cent - still voted for Botham.

The great all-rounder found his biggest backing among 40 to 49-year-olds, with 60.3 per cent choosing Botham as the best. Anderson fared worst among the 60 and over category, with just 7.1 per cent voting for him.

Burnley-born Anderson was best supported in the north-east rather than his native north-west when the respondents were broken down into regions, with 16.7 per cent picking him as England's greatest in the north-east compared to 13.5 per cent in the north-west.

Botham's biggest support base appears to be in Wales, where 64.8 per cent of respondents voted for him. He received 55.4 per cent of the east midlands vote as well, with Londoners showing the least backing for 'Beefy' with just 29.4 per cent going for him. Anderson was least popular in East Anglia - just 5.9 per cent of respondents based there voted for him.

One thousand people took part in the poll.

Source: PA