It’s 500 not out as Broad plans for England future
maintained himself and kept upskilling himself to be able to not only compete but get better at this level.
“If you look at both of our records over the last few years, we are actually improving. Compare my last 18 months to my career record and it’s way better which is always a great sign.”
All of a sudden nothing seems impossible for the rejuvenated Broad – going past Courtney Walsh on 519? Glenn McGrath on 563? One day surpassing even Anderson’s final tally?
“I’ve never even thought about that. I’m not particularly a goal-setter, so it’s not as though I sit here and say, ‘I want 600 wickets’,” he said. “If you’d asked me four years ago, ‘at 34 do you think you could play another three or four years?’ I’d have said absolutely not. Now I am 34 I feel fit, post-lockdown my fitness testing was the best it’s ever been and I feel excited to be playing around this group.
“If I keep bowling the way I am for the next few years then I wouldn’t rule anything out.”
While Broad is happy to keep adding to his proud record as long as his form and fitness allows, he accepts the chances of him being the last bowler to to hit 500 is very real given the structural changes to the sport.
“It’s a great question. Someone is going to have to play a lot of cricket because there is a lot of competition out there, between different T20 leagues franchises, 100-ball cricket... I think there’s talk of thinning the amount of Tests we play in a summer down.
“I think there’ll be people who have the talent to get the numbers but whether they’ll be able to play the amount of Test cricket the seam bowlers have done to get that feat remains to be seen.”