The Hundred Men’s 2025: James Anderson’s underwhelming debut sparks mixed reactions, Dale Steyn backs pacer to come good

Former South African cricketer Dale Steyn has come out in support of James Anderson after the latter’s debut match in 2025 Hundred turned out to be a forgettable one. The 43-year-old conceded 36 runs in his quota of 20 deliveries for Manchester Originals against Southern Brave at the Old Trafford.

Steyn expressed his opinion in an X (formerly Twitter), even hoping that the veteran will be acquired by an SA20 franchise for the upcoming season. However, the comments section of Steyn’s post did not quite resonate the same sentiments. Quite a few felt Anderson does not quite fit the bill for such high-paced cricket, and that he should not be keeping a potential youngster out on the bench.

Interestingly, Anderson, who became the second-oldest man to play in The Hundred, started off quite tidily with the ball. He conceded only 10 runs in as many deliveries in the second innings. The maximum damage was inflicted on the final three balls of Anderson’s final set, when Jason Roy tore into him to smack a couple of fours sandwiched with a maximum.

Manchester Originals ultimately went onto lose the game by one wicket and one ball to spare. Scott Currie’s four-wicket haul (4/28 in 20 balls) went in vain as an unbeaten eight-ball 18 from Craig Overton sealed the deal for the away team.

Here’s how X reacted to Anderson’s debut in The Hundred: