For any cricketer, a phase where things don’t tend to go his/her way are completely defining. In a period, where things look completely bizarre and victories are hard to come by, such phases end up either making or breaking a player. England pacer Stuart Broad has been in this situation before and in his recent interaction with the press, cited his side’s 5-0 Ashes drubbing in 2013/14 in Australia as one such case.
During that ill fated tour of Australia, England seemed to be profusely blank as their batsmen surrendered meekly to the sheer hostility of Mitchell Johnson. To add to that, the off field woes in the form of the entire Kevin Pietersen episode further added to the mess. Stuart Broad had a decent campaign, as he ended up being England’s leading wicket-taker with 21 scalps.
In his chat with ESPNCricinfo, Broad admitted that the particular tour of Australia toughened him up.
“That really helped make me as a cricketer,” Broad said. “It made me quite a steely character, made me know how to deal with crowd pressure, put it to one side and work on your performance.
“It was an experience for sure, I played there in the Big Bash against Brisbane, and got a bit of crowd interaction but certainly not as much as in an England shirt. To walk away with that sort of reaction but with a six-for was a pleasing feeling. I told myself I can deal with everything that’s thrown at me externally and still deliver a good performance. “Obviously the Test didn’t go our way but I know I am a competitive bloke, I thrive in competitive situations, and there’s no better situation than an Ashes series away from home, and it’s a hugely exciting challenge for us,” said Broad.
“We’ve got a lot to get through but we are building a team that can challenge Australia in Australia. I spent some time there and there’s no doubt they are formidable in their own conditions, but we have players of the likes of Root and Stokes, Jos Buttler’s such a dangerous talent with the bat, and Moeen Ali too.
“These are guys who are delivering on the big stage, plus a few senior guys who’ve been there and done that. We are growing as a team and this will be an exciting Test team to follow over the next few years,” said an optimistic Broad about England’s future.