James Anderson said that he was “shocked” to be released from his boyhood club Lancashire and questioned whether there was “something fundamentally wrong with me as a person”.

Anderson, who is 44, was released despite captaining Lancashire last summer and taking 50 County Championship wickets at an average of just 17.7. He has already been approached by other counties, but is unsure whether he will continue in the game.

“I went in for what I thought was a conversation about how the team moves forward,” Anderson said on the Tailenders podcast. “A couple of minutes in I realised it wasn’t a conversation. I was being told they thought the best way for the team to move forward was without me.

“I was quite shocked. It was quite brief.”

Paul Farbrace, Lancashire’s new director of cricket, told Anderson the club would not extend his contract as they seek to rebuild after coming second-bottom in Division Two last season. Richard Kenyon, the new chief executive of the club, was also in the meeting.

“All of the way through the season myself and the head coach were like ‘is it something we are doing? Could we be doing more to help the team?’” Anderson said.

“I finished the season thinking ‘was it something I did? Was I doing something wrong?’ – and then I get this news. Now I am thinking that even more.”

Lancashire’s handling of Anderson, who made his championship debut for the club in 2002, has widely been criticised. Stuart Broad has criticised Lancashire’s “disrespectful” treatment of Anderson, who was denied a farewell at the club. Lancashire members have also expressed their anger.

For Anderson, his release brought back memories of how he was told that his services would no longer be required by England in 2024. In a Manchester hotel, Anderson was told that he no longer figured in England’s plans by managing director Rob Key alongside Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes.

“I am thinking ‘this is happening again. Is there something fundamentally wrong with me as a person?’ Your head just sort of races,” Anderson said.

“I wanted to see my career out with Lancs. I was born there, grew up watching them, had some of my most memorable days out with dad watching them, got to play for them and captain the club, which is something most people dream about.”

Anderson is now assessing whether he wants to extend his County Championship career away from Old Trafford.

“I am still trying to process everything and weigh up the best way forward for me,” he said. “I am starting to get excited about the future, whether it is something different or playing cricket again. It is exciting.

“I don’t know if my career is done, we will have to wait and see, but it would be nice at some point if someone would let me retire.”

Anderson joked that he “wouldn’t have thought” that he could play for Yorkshire, Lancashire’s fierce rivals, as he assesses his future options.

“There are exciting challenges ahead. I have to attack it like that and not dwell too much on how or why it finished at Lancs.”

Next month Anderson will take the field again. He is co-owner of the Napoli Knights, who will play in the new Italia T10 league, and will also captain the side. The Italia T10 league, a 10-over-a-side competition, begins on Nov 18, with the competition being played at the Roma Cricket Ground in the Italian capital.