BROAD HAS THAT EMPTY FEELING
Stuart calls on expert to lift him for fanless Tests
STUART BROAD has spoken to a sports psychologist in a bid to get himself in the right frame of mind for taking on West Indies in front of empty stands.
Among active Test cricketers, only Broad’s new-ball partner Jimmy Anderson has appeared in more than his 138 Tests.
But, despite his vast experience, Broad has expressed concerns about the sterile nature of behind-closed-doors cricket, admitting: ‘Maybe I’ll have to pick more of a battle with the opposition!’
Broad, who turned 34 last week, is just 15 wickets short of becoming the seventh player in Test history to reach 500.
And he is leaving nothing to chance as he prepares for a series that will be like no other, picking the brains of David Young — psychologist for both the England cricket team and Manchester City — about the unique challenge ahead.
‘I’ve already spoken to him about making sure I can get my emotions up to where they need to be,’ he said. ‘If you put me in an Ashes game or a pre-season friendly, I know which one I’ll perform better in.
‘It’s a worry for me, because I know that I perform at my best when the game is at its most exciting and needs changing.
‘I also know there are certain scenarios that bring the worst out of me — when the game is just floating along and there is nothing on it. I’ve got to be able to make sure my brain is in Test-match mode.’
Few English bowlers down the years have thrived on pressure quite like Broad.
Seven of his 17 Test hauls of five wickets or more have come in the Ashes, and four against India and South Africa.
Now, with the help of Young, who will be with England during the second and third Tests in Manchester, he is having to reinvent himself once more ahead of next week’s series opener at Southampton’s Ageas Bowl.
‘It’s almost like creating a bubble around yourself and finding what little things give you that competitive edge,’ he said.
‘It might involve doing even more research into the opposition batsmen’s strengths and weaknesses, so I’m very focused on getting in a competitive battle with the batsman — instead of relying on the crowd to get my emotions going.’
In a reference to his father, Chris, an ICC match referee, he joked: ‘ Maybe I have to pick more of a battle with the opposition, and bring my dad into things a bit more.’
England’s 30-man squad, who were due to have their latest round of testing for Covid-19 this morning, embark on a three-day warm-up game on Wednesday in their biosecure bubble at the Ageas Bowl.
Competition for places has been high — not least among the 13 fast bowlers in the party.
‘ Training has been nicely intense,’ said Broad. ‘Actually, the coaches have been telling us to make sure we control our intensity a little, because, if we come in and spike our workloads, we risk injury. There is certainly no panic over the strength in depth of English fast bowling. We’ve all come here fit and fresh, which is rare for a fast-bowling group.
‘The dream ticket is to board a flight for Brisbane next winter and having this lot of fast bowlers all ready to go. That is the aim for English cricket.
‘Can we have Olly Stone, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Broad, Anderson, all fit, fresh and ready to go? If we can, we’ve got a chance of winning in Australia.’
The unusual nature of the next few weeks, though, should be enough to keep minds focused as England seek to win back the Wisden Trophy they lost in the Caribbean early last year.
‘We’ve got to look after each other as players in this environment,’ said Broad.
‘It is different being away from family and friends in the UK. It does feel a bit strange.
‘If players go through tricky times while in this biosecure environment — have a bad spell, have a bad day, have a bad week — you can’t escape the cricket at all, mentally. We’ve got to make sure as a group of players that we get it right now.’