Not for the first time in his career, Stuart Broad goes up with a huge appeal. The umpire’s finger is raised, and Dean Elgar is out. The South Africa captain chooses not to review the decision, and the England bowler has his 564th Test wicket. It’s a historic one in that he passes Australian great Glenn McGrath to become the second most prolific seam bowler in Test cricket history.
That moment at The Oval on Sunday was followed by another two Broad wickets. On 566, only teammate Jimmy Anderson has more than him among quicks, with 667. While the fast-bowling duo have benefitted from the more packed international calendars of the modern day – they have played a combined 334 Test matches in their careers – they have also endured the unparalleled rigours that come with more frequent five-day fixtures. There have simply never been two bowlers like them before.
People seem to keep expecting 40-year-old Anderson to retire but he never does. Broad, meanwhile, is four years his junior and is still bursting with all the levels of enthusiasm he had in his armoury as a 21-year-old debutant back in 2007. If you think he’s going anywhere soon, you’re mistaken.
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When Chris Silverwood and Joe Root made the decision to give regular rest to one or both of Anderson and Broad they did so as if both bowlers were approaching 40 rather than the former alone. Broad has just turned 36, and those who simply lump the pair in together in conversations about longevity would do well to remember that the Nottinghamshire bowler has years left in him yet
“I took 11 wickets in the final two Ashes matches, I have been Test match standard for a long time and, for the last eight years, you would say world class,” Broad told the Daily Mail after being left out of the tour to the West Indies earlier this year.
“And so, it makes it even more upsetting that they don't see me part of their immediate plans, especially with a view to looking at a way of winning away from home, which was briefly explained to me.”
Since Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes have taken over as coach and captain they have made it clear that the seam pair have a future in the team for as long as they keep taking wickets. While Ollie Robinson has succeeded him as new-ball partner to Anderson for the time being, Broad still has a big role to play at first change at the very least.
He will likely miss the forthcoming tour to Pakistan since his fiancée is due to give birth to their first child before the year is out, but that will probably only help him in the medium term as it provides a natural break in his hectic cricket schedule.
England will miss him in Pakistan if he doesn’t make the tour, just as they missed both he and Anderson in the West Indies. There is no more trying to move beyond Broad and Anderson, there is only an attempt to embrace them while they’re both still firing.
And that’s what Broad’s 566 wickets prove. He is still firing. He is still giving more for England than most bowlers could dream of. New ball or first change, it doesn’t matter… Stuart Broad gets wickets. As Anderson closes in on Shane Warne’s mark of 708 career dismissals, Broad is unlikely to be too far behind him now that he has a leadership group firmly behind him rather than standing in his way.
*18+ | BeGambleAware
