Stuart Broad finished his Test career with 604 wickets from 167 matches.© AFP
England pacer Stuart Broad shocked the cricketing world after he announced his retirement from professional cricket following the conclusion of the 2023 Ashes. Broad, who finished his Test career with 604 wickets from 167 matches at an average of 27.68, opened up on his decision to retire during a recent interaction with former South Africa AB de Villiers on the latter’s YouTube channel. Broad shed light on one of his “biggest fears”, which played a part in his decision to call it a day.
The 37-year-old revealed he wanted to go out on a high and not when young batters consider his bowling “rubbish”.
“Moving on from the game is one of the toughest decisions you could ever make. For me, I wanted to still love the game. I wanted to still know I could compete at the top level when I moved on. Ultimately, I wanted to finish at the very top. I’d almost say that one of my biggest fears was bowling against 20-year-old opening batters and them going, ‘I heard he was good, but he’s rubbish’. I knew I wanted to finish while I can still do it,” Broad told de Villiers during the interaction.
Broad, who took 22 wickets during the recently-concluded Ashes, said that England vs Australia has “always been the pinnacle” for him.
“I never wanted that feeling of going six months too late or finishing with my last act on a cricket field being a torn hamstring and you are never seen again. That was tearing my mind a bit. As soon as I got to grips with the feeling of wanting to finish on top… England vs Australia has always been the pinnacle for me in my career,” he added.
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