Manchester, (Samajweekly) England fast bowler Stuart Broad said that he remains fresh and raring to go after the 34-year-old became the fourth fast bowler and seventh overall to cross 500 Test wickets on Tuesday.
He helped England to a win in the third Test against West Indies, and thus a 2-1 series win, by taking 10 wickets in the match. He thus ends the series as the highest wicket-taker, despite not playing in the first Test.
“Never really set any targets on that front,” said Broad in the post-match presentation ceremony when asked what his ambitions were when he took his first ever Test wicket in the form of Chaminda Vaas against Sri Lanka in 2007. Broad was Man of the Match for the third Test and West Indies coach Phil Simmons chose him as England’s player of the series.
“It does feel a long time ago and I’ve learnt so much. What’s pleasing to me at the moment is that I feel so fresh and have done some technical work that makes me feel in great rhythm right now. Looking forward to a couple of days outside the bio-secure environment but also looking forward to playing against Pakistan,” he said.
Broad said that England have an enviable fast bowling attack. James Anderson, Sam Curran, Chris Woakes and Ben Stokes have all chipped in throughout the series with Woakes cleaning up the West Indies lower order and picking five wickets.
“The competition keeps everyone performing. We’ve got a real battery of fast bowlers at the minute. Really strong bowling attack in these conditions. Have got the most out of the pitches. Chris Woakes today, he’s been bowling beautifully since we got into the environment. The five-for is justified,” he said.
West Indies all-rounder Roston Chase was chosen as his team’s player of the series by England coach Chris Silverwood. He felt that the team fell short in the batting department after their emphatic win in the first Test.
“Doing well against England gets you credit in the cricketing world, so it’s a good incentive. For us to win the series, batsmen had to put up their hands. Guys have been showing signs of improvement but didn’t do enough to come up victorious,” he said.
