England and Australian players are indulging in banter and mind games ahead of the 2023 Ashes series, slated to get underway on June 16 at Edgbaston. 

Recently, veteran England pacer Stuart Broad create quite a stir by saying that he doesn’t consider last Ashes Down Under a real one since the COVID-19 restrictions were too harsh and the English players found themselves in a lot of discomfort due to quarantine protocols. 

Now, Broad’s bowling partner James Anderson has said that not having friends in the Australian camp brings the best out of him.

“Whenever I play against Australia they try and play fire with fire. They come back even harder at you. Usually, that ends with England backing down, but perhaps not this time. I am guessing Ben will want to go even harder. He will want to be more positive, more aggressive and really take it to Australia,” Anderson was quoted as saying by The Telegraph.

“I just like not knowing them away from cricket, not being mates with them. I just like seeing them as an opponent and really trying to get into the battle against them. I don’t think it has happened yet but the amount of cricket played in franchise cricket with the mix of nationalities could in the future take the edge away from the spark you get in the Ashes,” he added.

Widely regarded as the most successful seamer in Test cricket history, Anderson is keen to win the Ashes this time around.

 “I just want to win the Ashes again. It feels like a long time since I’ve been involved in a winning Ashes,” he stated.

James Anderson has played 179 Tests for Australia, claiming 685 wickets at an average of 25.99, including 32 five-wicket hauls.