WATCH: James Anderson's Daughters Ring the Bell at Lord's on Veteran Pacer's Farewell Test

Veteran pacer James Anderson received a rousing reception at the Lord’s as he stepped out for his final Test match, against West Indies, on Wednesday. In a charismatic career spanning two decades, Anderson played 187 Tests and picked up a record 700 wickets. The game against the Windies at the ‘Home of Cricket’ will be his last gig in the longest format as he has decided to hang up his boots before turning 42.

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On Thursday, the crowd at Lord’s welcomed Anderson with a huge round of applause as the veteran speedster led the English team out on the field.

His family was in attendance while his daughters, Lola and Rudy, rang the big bell to announce the start of play. England Cricket shared the video of Anderson’s daughters ringing the bell on social media and wrote, “Special moments this morning.”

It was a special moment for the veteran speedster as he was all smiles before the national anthems.

Anderson might have carried on for the rest of the season even though he turns 42 at the end of July.

But the decision to retire was effectively made for him when he met with England managing director Rob Key, red-ball coach Brendon McCullum and Test captain Ben Stokes in late April.

The hierarchy told Anderson they wanted to make changes as they looked to build a squad for the 2025/26 Ashes series in Australia.

“I wouldn’t say it was a surprise because when the three big dogs invited me to a hotel in Manchester for a chat I didn’t think it was just a normal appraisal,” Anderson told the press at Lord’s.

“I had a suspicion that that was going to be the case. I think they were surprised at how calm I was when I reacted. I think I was probably surprised at my reaction. I wasn’t overly emotional about it or angry about it or anything,” he added.