England pacer Stuart Broad has announced that he will retire from cricket and the ongoing fifth Test of the Ashes series will be the last match of his professional career.
Talking to Sky Sports, Broad said, “Tomorrow- well Monday- will be my last game of cricket.”
“It’s been a wonderful ride, a huge privilege to wear the Nottinghamshire and the England badge as much as I have and I’m loving cricket as much as I ever have.”
Stuart Broad’s comments on retirement
Broad said he made the decision to retire at about 8:30 pm on Friday, the second day of the Test at The Oval. In his chat, Broad said he had been thinking about retiring for a couple of weeks. Talking about his decision, Broad said he has been loving cricket as much as he ever has. “It’s been such a wonderful series to be a part of, and I’ve always wanted to finish at the top. And this series just feels like it’s been one of the most enjoyable and entertaining I’ve been a part of,” he added.
He further said that playing against Australia has always been the “pinnacle” for him. “I’ve loved the battles with Australia I’ve had personally and as a team,” he said.
Saying that he has had a “love affair” with Ashes cricket, he wanted his “last bat and bowl to be in the Ashes”. On being asked why he chose to announce his decision at the given moment, the English player said, “I told Stokesy last night and told the changing room this morning and to be honest, it felt like the right time. I didn’t want friends or teammates at Nottinghamshire to see things that might come out so I prefer to just say it and give it a good crack for the last Australia innings.”
He said Ben Stokes understood his decision when he informed him.
Broad made his Test debut against Sri Lanka in 2007.
