For the first six years of James Anderson's international career, the best way to sum up his bowling was to paraphrase Mother Goose: when he's good, he's very, very good - and when he's bad he's horrid. Well, fairly horrid, anyway, because when the force was with him, he was capable of irresistible spells, seemingly able to swing the ball round corners at an impressive speed.

In 2010 however, Anderson came of age in a staggeringly comprehensive fashion. No longer content with being unplayable when the mood caught him, he took the decision to shelve the "magic balls" and concentrated on hammering out a rock-solid line and length, with dot balls and maidens his new holy grail. The upshot was a scintillating year in which he proved unhittable in every sense, with an economy rate that ramped up the pressure in every spell, and a range of weapons that made him a threat on every surface he was presented with.

A career-best 11-wicket haul against Pakistan at Trent Bridge was the prelude to a coming-of-age tour of Australia in the winter of 2010-11. Anderson arrived to a torrent of doubters, who recalled his forlorn performance on the preceding Ashes four years earlier, in which he had taken five wickets at 82.60. But he left with a series-sealing 24 scalps at 26.04, and a reputation transformed. Deadly with conventional swing and seam, and with a new line in reverse swing as well, he had become arguably the most complete fast bowler in the world.

It had been a long journey to fulfilment. Anderson had played only three one-day games for Lancashire when he was hurried into England's one-day squad in Australia in 2002-03 as cover for Andy Caddick. He didn't have a number - or even a name - on his shirt, but a remarkable ten-over stint, costing just 12 runs, in century heat at Adelaide earned him a World Cup spot. There, he produced a matchwinning spell against Pakistan before a sobering last-over disaster against Australia.

Five wickets followed in the first innings of his debut Test, against Zimbabwe at home in 2003, then a one-day hat-trick against Pakistan ... but then his fortunes waned. For a couple of years Anderson was a peripheral net bowler. A stress fracture kept him out for most of 2006, but he still made the Australian tour and the World Cup. And suddenly, in the absence of the entire Ashes-winning attack in the second half of 2007, Anderson looked the part of pack leader again.

New Zealand were blown away in Nottingham in 2008 (Anderson 7 for 43); the following May the West Indians looked clueless in Chester-le-Street (nine wickets in the match); and back at Trent Bridge in 2010 Pakistan's inexperienced batsmen could hardly lay a bat on him (5 for 54 and 6 for 17).

Anderson's left-hand batting has also steadily improved from his early days as a fully paid-up rabbit: one of his unlikelier landmarks was going 54 Test innings before collecting a duck, an England record. At Cardiff in 2009 he survived for 69 nail-chewing minutes to help stave off defeat by Australia. He is also a superb fielder.
Andrew Miller

• May 31, 2002
  A star in the making
  • After impressing for club side Burnley, a 19-year-old James Anderson makes his first-class debut for Lancashire against Surrey at Old Trafford. Takes four wickets in the game including Mark Ramprakash for a first-ball duck in the second innings.
    
• December 15, 2002
  Flying start
  • His promising first-class performances earn him a call-up from England's academy side to the one-day team in Australia. After an inauspicious debut he impresses with late-swing and composure. A remarkable spell of 1 for 12 in 10 overs at Adelaide isn't enough to bring England victory, but does secure him a place in the squad for the World Cup that followed.
    
• February to March 2003
  Hero to zero
  • England looked like they had unearthed a gem when Anderson used the heady atmosphere of the Newlands evening to bowl England to victory over Pakistan. His man-of-the-match 4 for 29 included Inzamam-ul-Haq and Yousuf Youhana in successive deliveries of darting away-swingers.
    
    Two games later he crashed down to earth as Australia came back from the dead at Port Elizabeth to dump England out the World Cup . With Australia needing 14 runs to win from the final two overs, Anderson's attempted slower-ball was carted for six and the next ball for four to make the finish a formality.
    
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• May 2003
  A lively return
  • Despite his fatal final over he returns for his first home season of international cricket as England's latest saviour. His duly delivers 5 for 73 on his Test debut against Zimbabwe at Lord's before taking six wickets in the second Test at Chester-le-street.
    
• June 23, 2003
  Hat-trick hero
  • His bowling continues to fire as he records England's first ODI hat-trick against Pakistan at the Oval and persistently troubles the touring South Africans as England take the Natwest series.
    
• July 2003
  Hot-streak comes to an end
  • Sporting a new red streak across his hair, finally his rocketing start began to wane as Graeme Smith's broad bat proved unbreachable. In a thrilling five-match series shared two Tests a piece, Anderson falls behind Andrew Flintoff and Steve Harmison's rising profiles. He finishes with 15 wickets in this series at 39.86.
    
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• September 2003 to September 2005
  Net bowler supreme
  • Enters a long a frustrating period of his career where a combination of injury, management interference and even the odd Test match provoke much naval gazing and hand-wringing from England supporters.
    
    While Michael Vaughan developed and polished the fab-four as England mobilised for the Ashes charge, Anderson found himself on the periphery. A single Test in Colombo followed by a few Tests against the West Indies at home included only the occasional flash of his talent, such as his 4 for 52 at the Oval that included Brian Lara.
    
    In between he cut a disconsolate figure, bowing perfect overs against a single cone in practice while England were winning consecutive series.
    
• March 18, 2006
  Returning with the ring of fire
  • After English cricket stumbled upon reaching the summit of the 2005 Ashes victory, Andrew Flintoff's Jonny-Cash inspired side overcame a glut of injuries to record a memorable victory against India in Mumbai. Anderson proved pivotal, taking 4 for 40, including Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, in the first innings and Virender Sehwag for a duck in the second.
    
• May 2006
  Injury strikes again
  • Just when England needed Anderson to build a side for the upcoming Ashes defence, he went down with a stress fracture to the lower back that ruled him out of the 2006 home season.
    
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• November 2006 to January 2007
  Five-nil farce
  • Having barely had any match practice, Anderson was included in Flintoff's team of crocks to challenge Australia at the Gabba. Unsurprisingly he struggled, taking 1 for 195 in the match. His luck didn't improve as England were crushed by Ricky Ponting's relentless team.
    
• March to April 2007
  Another failed World Cup
  • Having bowled himself back into form through England's victorious one-day series in Australia, Anderson duly broke his finger and despite displaying his heart for a fight by battling through the pain to play in England's hopeless World Cup campaign, he was never at his threatening best.
    
• July 2007
  Rolling back the years
  • Having made his debut five years earlier, Anderson seemed something of a veteran by 2007. Yet he was only 24 and after half a decade of coaches messing about with his action, Anderson took matters into his own hands. He returned to the head-ducking style that launched his career and announced himself as a genuine threat again with 5 for 42 against India at Lord's.
    
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• March 2008
  Daisy becomes leader
  • His penchant for inconsistency moved some to label Anderson 'daisy'. Some days, such as his blistering 5 for 73 against New Zealand at Wellington, he does. Some days he doesn't, such as the next Test at Napier where he took 1 for 153 from 24 overs in the match. However as England desperately looked to move on from 2005 by ditching Matthew Hoggard and Steve Harmison, Anderson was elevated to 'leader' the attack.
    
• May 2008 to September 2009
  Strauss's man
  • As England went through from Vaughan to Pietersen before settling on Strauss as their captain, Anderson became a more vocal figure in the dressing room and on the field. Visibly growing into his senior role he became Strauss's go-to bowler and his nerveless batting at Cardiff secured England a crucial draw in the opening Test before his 4 for 55 in the first innings helped skittle Australia at Lord's and set up an Ashes victory.
    
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