Broad seeking clean sweep of Test nations

Published : May 17, 2016 23:23 IST

England seamer Stuart Broad
England seamer Stuart Broad
lightbox-info

England seamer Stuart Broad

Stuart Broad hopes England can overcome both Sri Lanka and Pakistan in the coming months, which would see them hold the trophies over all nine Test-playing nations.

Alastair Cook's side take on Sri Lanka in a three-match series which starts at Headingley on Thursday, before Pakistan visit for four Tests, beginning at Lord's in mid-July.

England were beaten 1-0 by a touring Sri Lanka side in their last Test encounter in 2014, while they were undone 2-0 against Pakistan in United Arab Emirates in October and November last year.

However, a 2-1 win in South Africa - then the number one-ranked side in the world - either side of the new year provided great cause for optimism that a young England side will go on to achieve great things.

And Broad is targeting series victories over both of this year's tourists as England look to lay claim to the trophies against all Test-playing countries.

"I think we're in an interesting place as a team, in that we've actually won some brilliant series - beating Australia, beating South Africa away from home - but we're still very much in a development stage," he told Omnisport.

"We've got young guys who are coming through, performing spectacularly and then being very quiet for a period of time, so we still have a lot to achieve as a team.

"And I think the biggest motivation that I personally can take into this year is we've got seven out of nine Test trophies and the two we don't have are Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

"So if we can sit here in August and have all nine Test trophies and still have a developing team, that's a very special place to be.

"I can't think of many teams that have been able to do that, maybe Australia when they had the Waughs and Warnes and McGraths, but I can't think that many other teams have achieved that and that's got to be top of our agenda."

Broad played a key role during the victory in South Africa, as a remarkable spell of 6-17 from 12.1 overs helped skittle the Proteas for just 83 in the Test that sealed England's triumph.

And the seamer believes he has added extra skills to his game that make him a potent threat to all batsmen.

"One thing that I've done over the last two years is nip the ball back to the right-hander a lot and swing the ball away from the left-hander," he said.

"Part of this little break I've had and development period, I've worked hard with Andy Pick, the Notts bowling coach, to try and swing the ball away a bit more, because if a batsman's looking for me to nip it back all the time, if I can show him an away-swinger it creates more doubt in his mind.

"So I'm looking to improve from the bowler I am and I think that will keep me moving forward for this summer."

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment