Broad’s fast show a tonic for England

STUART BROAD rediscovered his pace and form to give England a chance of forcing a victory i n the second Test against the West Indies yesterday.

In a spell that saw him bowl at speeds in excess of 90mph, Broad (below) took three wickets as the West Indies lost four for just 24 runs on the second day.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan was impressed with Broad’s pace bowling which claimed the wickets of Denesh Ramdin, Jason Holder and Kemar Roach, saying: ‘It’s a decent spell from Broad. I always think his bowling is so much more effective when he’s up above 85mph.’

A last-wicket stand of 52 by tail- enders Devendra Bishoo and Shannon Gabriel took some of the gloss off Broad’s display, allowing the West Indies to post a first innings total of 299. Jimmy Anderson had earlier earned himself a rebuke from the umpires after clenching his fist and roaring into Marl o n Samuels’ face having removed the talented West Indies batsman.

Samuels had played a loose shot to give away his wicket just two balls after reaching the century he had worked so hard for — and the leader of the England attack could not resist letting him know what he thought.

There had been little applause from the England fielders when Samuels, who had clashed with Ben Stokes on the first evening, reached a landmark that rescued his side from the perils of 74 for four.

He has previous with Anderson, having had a run-in with him three years ago during the Trent Bridge Test, and had made a point of saying ‘these English boys don’t learn’ during an entertaining press conference on Tuesday.

And while England largely held their tongues on the second day of this second Test, this was clearly a wicket that meant a lot to them.

It also went a long way towards making this another hard match to win for an England side seeking their first away Test victory since wins in Mumbai and Kolkata against India in 2012.