Stuart Broad opined that England needs to put big runs on board and focus on batting if they want to win the Ashes in Australia. He insisted that pacers with 95 mph speed cannot win matches single-handedly and the batsmen need to contribute generously.
The last time England won the Ashes in Australian soil was in their 2010-11 tour when they secured a 3-1 victory. In that series, England batted extraordinary well and even scored their highest innings total of 644 since 1938. It was their first victory in Australia for 24 years.
Stuart Broad Feels England Must Put Up A Mammoth Total On Board
After that England have twice visited Australia and have faced cruel defeats both times by margins of 5-0 in 2013/14 and 4-0 in 2017/18. In 2013/14, England flopped with the bat with only Ben Stokes scoring a solitary century while Australia scored 10 centuries between their six specialist batsmen.
In 2017/18, Australia performed extraordinary well with Steve Smith, Shaun Marsh, Usman Khawaja scoring centuries as Australia won 4-0 with one test drawn where England’s Alastair Cook scored 244 not out.
In the most recent Ashes competition which was held last year, Australia were able to draw the series 2-2 in England and hence retained the urn.
The English side are scheduled to visit their biggest rivals in 2021-22 and veteran pacer Stuart Broad believes that it’s the batsmen who need to perform to be able to defeat Australia in Australia. He believes that the batsmen must put up at least 400 runs to fight with hosts Australia instead of worrying about pacers.
“If you want to know what it takes to win Test matches in Australia, it’s not whether you have someone who can get up to 95mph,” Stuart Broad wrote in his column for the Mail on Sunday.
“We should take the focus off which bowlers are going to be selected for that series because it’s an irrelevant conversation if you’re going to be bowled out for 200. It’s equally irrelevant if you’re bowled out for 300. You need to be reaching the 400s.”
He pointed out that the last time England won in Australia in 2010-11, England’s batsmen Alaistair Cook scored 235 not out in the 1st test and 189 in the fifth, Kevin Pietersen scored 227 in the 2nd, Jonathan Trott scored 168 not out in the fourth as England batted just once and won three matches despite their pacers bowling in the mid 80 mph speed.
Stuart Broad Feels England Must Put Pressure On Steve Smith By Posting Huge Total
The presence of in-form batsman Steve Smith in the Australian team always makes it tough for opponents especially in Australia where he averages 71.14. According to Stuart Broad, in order to put pressure on the batsman, it is extremely important for England to put up a huge total on the board.
“Steve Smith has batted against 90mph bowling throughout a career in which he averages the best part of 63. But what he hasn’t done often is go out to bat having been fielding for two days and the opposition having a huge score on the board. We need that mindset of keeping the opposition out there until the second evening,” Stuart Broad stated.
The 34-year-old pacer became only the 7th bowler in Tests to bag more than 500 wickets. Stuart Broad bagged 29 wickets averaging a meagre 13.41 in five matches in this season.