Broad eyed up England retirement after axe
Stuart Broad has revealed he was “so down” after being dropped for the first Test match against West Indies that he considered retiring.
Broad, 34, who claims he is bowling as well as ever and hasneverbeenfitter,returned to the side for the second and third Tests and played a key role as England hit back to win the series 2-1.
“Were there thoughts of retirement going round my head? One hundred per cent. BecauseIwassodown,”hesaid. “I was expecting to play, which is always a bit of a dangerous thing in sport, but I felt I deserved to play.
Broad explained that the coronavirus restrictions placedonalltheplayersduring the Test series did not help as he tried to come to terms with beingdroppedforthefirstTest in Southampton.
“I have not really told anyone this but I was so down that week of the first Test,” he said. “I was really low. I was stuck in that hotel. I couldn’t go anywhere. I wasn’t playing, I was staying in a single room. I didn’t sleep for two days. I was nowhere. A different decision could definitely have been madewithmyemotionsofhow I was feeling.”
Broad said his family had played a crucial role in helping himthroughtheperiod,ashad England skipper Ben Stokes.
“Stokesy was brilliant,” Broad added. “Stokesy knocked on my door on the Thursday night and stayed in the corridor to talk to me. He said: ‘This isn’t about cricket, but how are you, mate?’ That was very impressive for him to do. In this modern world, sometimes face-to-face comfort can get lost. I have always had a huge amount of respect for Stokes and I will be friends with him for life, but what he did almost added to that.”