James Anderson became just the seventh cricketer to chalk up 250 Test wickets away from home as England romped to a monster 267-run victory over New Zealand on day four of the first Test.
It was as dominant a victory as the travelling party could have asked for, with spinner Jack Leach taking the first wicket of the day when he dismissed Michael Bracewell for 25.
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And it did not take terribly long after Leach’s wicket for Anderson to achieve his historic feat as the star trapped Scott Kuggeleijn LBW for just two runs.
The 40-year-old then snagged Black Caps skipper Tim Southee with the very next ball as he edged it to Joe Root in the slips.
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Anderson would have to wait until his next over for a crack at a hat-trick, but he unfortunately could not pull it off as Daryl Mitchell comfortably blocked the ball.
But Anderson would soon get his third wicket of the day when Neil Wagner flashed a shot to wicketkeeper Ben Foakes.
The evergreen bowler then completed his four-wicket haul of New Zealand’s second innings when a delivery clipped the top of off-stump to send Blair Tickner on his way for eight runs to end the Kiwi’s valiant 35-run final-wicket stand.
Anderson finished with impressive figures of 4/18 while his long-time bowling partner Stuart Broad also bagged a four-wicket haul but proved to be more expensive, shipping 49 runs.
The Black Caps’ Daryl Mitchell remained not out throughout the hosts’ second innings and finished with an unbeaten 57.
England and New Zealand will next face off in the second Test of the series which begins on February 24 at the Basin Reserve in Wellington.
