England’s James Anderson relished the presence of teammate Alastair Cook after becoming Test cricket’s leading wicket-taker, among seamers, at The Oval in London on Tuesday.

Anderson’s removal of the tail-enders on day five of the fifth Test all but sealed a 4-1 series triumph over India – and saw it saw the seamer surpass Australian Glenn McGrath’s tally of 563 wickets.

The veteran Englishman was pleased to complete the feat alongside Cook, who retired from international cricket at the end of the match.

‘I’m happy that Cook was on the field to see that wicket, it’s been a tough week,’ Anderson told Sky Sports.

‘I’m just happy to win the game, to be honest. I wasn’t even thinking about the record.’

The veteran right-armer was challenged by a superb partnership between centurions Lokesh Rahul and Rishabh Pant. Leg-spinner Adil Rashid eventually removed both, leaving Anderson to dismiss Mohammed Shami. The run-out of tail-ender Jasprit Bumrah sealed a 118-run victory for the hosts.

‘When they were building that partnership it was looking like they were going to get close. My job was just to try and hold an end and I didn’t think I’d end up bowling 14 overs from that end,’ added Anderson.

‘But I got into a really good rhythm and thankfully Joe Root let me take the new ball eventually and give me half a chance to take that wicket.’