Veteran England fast bowler Stuart Broad has announced that the fifth Ashes Test will be his “last game of cricket”, thus bringing the curtains down on an illustrious career in which he became just the second fast bowler and fourth bowler overall to take over 600 wickets in the format. Broad will end his career as the second highest Test wicket taker of all time for England, only behind his longtime teammate and pace partner James Anderson.
“Tomorrow or Monday will be my last game of cricket,” said Broad on Sky Sports Cricket after the third day’s play at the Oval on Saturday. “It has been a wonderful ride. A huge privilege to wear the Nottinghamshire and the England batch as much as I have. I am loving cricket as much as I ever had, it has been such a wonderful series to be a part of and I have always wanted to finish on the top. This series feels like one of the most enjoyable entertainment I’ve been a part of,” he said.
While Broad has stated that he is retiring from cricket, the England and Wales Cricket (ECB) put out a statement stating that he has announced his retirement from Test cricket. “Stuart Broad has announced his retirement from Test cricket, bringing an end to an illustrious 17-year international career,” it said.
Broad said that he made the decision to retire at “about 8.30pm last night” but had been mulling it for the past two weeks. He told captain Ben Stokes on Friday night and the rest of his teammates on Saturday morning. “I had been thinking about it for a couple of weeks. England vs Australia have been the pinnacle for me. I have loved the battles with Australia. I have got a love affair with Ashes and I wanted it to be my last bat and bowl. I told Stokesy last night, told the changing room this morning. It felt like the right time,” he said.
An all-time great
Broad made his international debut in a T20I match against Pakistan on August 28, 2006. He took two wickets in a match that England lost by five wickets. While he famously got smashed for six sixes in an over by Yuvraj Singh just over a year later in a 2007 T20 World Cup match against India, Broad’s stock continued to rise and he started his illustrious Test career on December 9, 2007 against Sri Lanka in Colombo. England bowled only once in the match that eventually ended in a draw and Broad took one wicket in the form of Chaminda Vaas.
Broad played 56 T20Is between 2006 and 2014, taking 65 wickets and 121 ODIs between 2006 and 2016, taking 178 scalps in the format. He was part of the England squad that won the 2010 T20 World Cup.
However, Broad’s most telling numbers are in Test cricket. He has taken 602 wickets thus far, a tally he could still add to at the Oval as England look to prevent Australia from beating them at home for the first time since 2001. He has taken a total of 845 wickets in his international career. Alongside Anderson, Broad is one of only two fast bowlers ever to pass 600 Test wickets for their country and took his 150th Ashes wicket in his final game at The Oval this week.
Broad’s career has been synonymous with the Ashes. His combative nature has often led to him being declared ‘Public Enemy No.1’ by the Australian media. He is England’s highest wicket taker against Australia, having become the first from his country to take over 150 wickets in the contest. His tally currently stands at 151 and he could still overtake Australia great Glenn McGrath’s record of 157. For now, he is the third highest wicket taker in Ashes history, behind McGrath and late Australia spin great Shane Warne, who took 195 wickets.
His career-defining spell came at his domestic home ground at Trent Bridge in the 2015 Ashes, where he took sensational figures of 8/15 in just 9.3 overs to rout Australia for 60. Broad’s eight five wicket hauls is the most in the Ashes for any England player since before the First World War.
