LONDON: England bowler Stuart Broad will retire from cricket following the Ashes.
The 37-year-old Broad made the shock announcement Saturday at stumps on the third day of the fifth and final Test against Australia at the Oval.
Broad has taken 602 wickets in 167 Tests — including 8-15 against Australia in 2015 — making him the second most successful paceman in Test history behind teammate James Anderson, and fifth overall. Fittingly, Broad and Anderson were at the crease together as England took a huge lead over Australia.
“Tomorrow or Monday will be my last game of cricket,” Broad told Sky Sports.
“It’s been a wonderful ride, a huge privilege to wear the Nottinghamshire and England badge as much as I have.
“I’m loving cricket as much as I have. It’s been a wonderful series to be part of and I’ve always wanted to finish at the top. This series just feels like it’s been one of the most enjoyable and entertaining that I’ve been part of.”
Asked when he had made his decision, Broad said: “About 8:30 last night. I’ve been thinking about it for a couple of weeks. England versus Australia has always been the pinnacle for me.
“I’ve loved the battles with Australia that have come my way personally and the team’s way. I’ve got a love affair with Ashes cricket and I wanted my last game to be Ashes cricket. I told Stokesy (England captain Ben Stokes) last night and the changing room this morning and it just felt the right time. I feel content with everything I’ve achieved in the game.
“It feels like my changing room and I wanted to walk away playing with a group of players I love to bits.”
Beneath the blond hair and boyish good looks lay a fierce competitiveness and an almost unquenchable thirst for improvement. Those knees-pumping hot streaks that took batting sides apart in a spell or two peppered his career, with the 8-15 on his Trent Bridge home ground the all-time highlight.
His place may have come under more regular scrutiny than Anderson but only his long-time opening bowling partner has taken more test wickets among seamers than Broad.
Broad claimed his 600th victim in England’s drawn fourth Ashes test against Australia.
Broad has tormented David Warner throughout his career and removed the Australia opener 17 times to move level with West Indies greats Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh, who both dismissed former England opener Michael Atherton 17 times during their test careers.
While he lacked outright pace, Broad was a shrewd thinker, spirited and adaptable, extracting bounce at home and overseas.
A key component in England’s 2010 World Twenty20 win, he captained the T20 side 27 times between 2011-14 before being unceremoniously shuffled out of the white-ball set-up as part of Eoin Morgan’s reset.
As with Anderson, the decision prolonged the test career of Broad, who nevertheless sits third in England’s all-time list of wicket-takers for both one-day internationals (178) and T20s (65), with the memory of being carted for six sixes in an over by India’s Yuvraj Singh in 2007 a distant one.
Broad, son of ex-England opening batter Chris Broad, made a Test ton against Pakistan in 2010 but a badly broken nose four years later after being clattered by Varun Aaron’s bumper curtailed any all-rounder ambitions. Before that incident he averaged 23.95 with the bat, which dropped to 18.00 after it.
His interventions with ball in hand arguably swung three home Ashes series England’s way. He had his breakout moment with five for 37 in the 2009 Oval decider, including four wickets in 21 balls, while career-best match figures of 11-121 at Chester-le-Street sealed England’s 3-0 success in 2013.
Two years later, given a rare chance to shine in the injured Anderson’s absence, he had his finest hour as Australia’s batters edged everything and imploded to 60 all out in 18.3 overs. The image of Broad, hands cupped to his mouth in disbelief at a Stokes grab, was the defining image in a 3-2 win.
“It was just one of those days you dream of,” Broad said.
