This summer was probably my favorite contest with Virat Kohli – James Anderson

England pacer James Anderson bowled exceptionally well against Virat Kohli in the last Test series. The two superstars have contested each other in 24 Test matches since 2012, with the veteran pacer dismissing the Indian skipper seven times.

“This summer was probably my favorite contest with Virat. We’ve had a few good battles over the years, both in England and India, but this year was certainly my favorite.”I got him out a few times, but he got some runs as well, and we had a battle on the field where there was definitely a mutual respect there. It was in a really nice manner if that makes sense.”Obviously, we were going at each other, but it was in a well-spirited way. So I really enjoyed that,” James Anderson told Fox Cricket’s Road to the Ashes podcast.

Virat scored 64 runs against the 39-year old player, getting dismissed twice in the Test series. With Anderson all set to play in the Ashes series, he will be targeting Steve Smith.

“As a bowler, you always look at the best player, and for me over the last three, four, or five years, Steve Smith’s been Australia’s best player.”He’s been the one they rely on for their volume of runs, obviously supported by guys around him like [David] Warner and [Marnus] Labuschagne recently.”But he’s been their go-to in the last few years, so he’ll be the one that we will be keen to get out early,” added James Anderson.