Stuart Broad to retire at the end of the ongoing Ashes

Stuart Broad has announced the ongoing fifth and final Ashes Test at The Oval will be the last match of his career. The England cricketer described his career as “a wonderful ride”.

The 37-year-old seamer, the fifth most successful bowler in Test history and second among seam bowlers, with 602 wickets, told Sky Sports after stumps on Day 3: “Tomorrow (Sunday) or Monday will be my last game of cricket.

“It has been a wonderful ride and a huge privilege to wear the Nottinghamshire and England badge as much as I have.”

Broad, the son of former England opening batsman Chris Broad, added: “I am loving cricket as much as I ever have. I have always wanted to finish at the top and this series feels like one of the most enjoyable and entertaining I have been a part of.”

Broad made the decision “at about 8:30 pm” on Friday evening, the second day of the Test at The Oval, and informed his seam-bowling partner James Anderson and teammate Joe Root before play on Saturday morning, while fighting back tears.

Broad, appearing in his 167th Test, made his debut in December 2007 against Sri Lanka. But it is Ashes cricket where he’s made his brightest mark. The seamer has played in every Ashes series since 2009, claiming 104 wickets at 26.56 in those 25 Tests. During this series, he overtook Ian Botham’s record for Test wickets against Australia, with a total of 151 to his name.

“I’ve been thinking about it for a while, a few weeks,” said Broad. “England vs Australia has always been the pinnacle for me.”

With Broad two not out at stumps on the third day, and England 389/9, with the hosts now 377 runs ahead, he could add to both his batting and bowling numbers.

His current runs tally reads 3656 and could add to the bowling numbers, hoping to add to the 602 wickets for England.

“I have loved the battles with Australia that have come my way and the team’s way, I have a love affair with the Ashes and I think I wanted my last bat and bowl to be in Ashes cricket,” he said.

“I grew up from such a young age being besotted by [Ashes cricket],” he said. “I certainly think as a player, I’ve had a good record in England against Australia. Ultimately, I think the competitiveness of what Australia bring to cricket brings out the best in me. I love the energy that the crowd brings to it. I know my emotions have to be sky-high for me to be a good bowler,” Broad added.

Broad, a four-time Ashes winner, added: “I told Stokesy (England captain Ben Stokes) last (Friday) night and told the changing room this morning, and to be honest it just felt the right time.

“I didn’t want friends and teammates to see things that might come out. I prefer just to say it and give it a good crack in the Australia innings.

“It’s been awesome. I don’t think I will leave the game with any regrets. I will give it a red-hot go over the next couple of days.”

On Friday, Broad, who made his name in Ashes cricket with 5/37 at The Oval in 2009, became the first Englishman to take 150 Test wickets against Australia.

“It does make me feel proud to have 150 Test wickets against the Aussies, to be in that sort of category with Warnie [Shane Warne] and Glenn [McGrath] above. I’ve loved every moment of bowling against Australia for sure – apart from Mitchell Johnson bowling at Brisbane, that was horrific,” said Broad.

His most spectacular bowling performance came when he took a remarkable 8/15 against Australia at his Trent Bridge home ground eight years ago.

Broad admitted his first priority at the end of the Ashes will be “babysitting duties”, after he and his fiancee Mollie King celebrated the birth of their first child, Annabella, last year.

“There’s quite a long break after this series so I was getting a lot of time off anyway,” he said. “Even within this Ashes series, I’ve been home for seven or eight nights, maybe. I feel like I haven’t seen Annabella and Mollie as much as I would like to at such a young age. I love everything about being a dad. Did it come into my decision? Potentially. There’s certainly something that fills my heart with joy about the fact I’ll be spending a bit more time at home.”

‘Hell of a career’

Australia off-spinner Todd Murphy paid tribute to Broad after Saturday’s close.

“What you admire about a guy like that is that he charges in no matter what the conditions are and he fights all day and I think that’s all you can ask from a cricketer and his record is unbelievable,” he said.

“He’s had a hell of a career”

Broad was also once an impressive lower order batsman, making 169 against Pakistan in 2010.

But he’s never been quite the same with the bat since having his nose broken by a bouncer from India’s Varun Aaron.

At stumps on Saturday Broad was batting alongside Anderson, his long-standing teammate, who has 690 wickets. Anderson, who turned 41 on Sunday, insisted he has no plans to retire.

“Jimmy will carry on, definitely,” Broad said. “He’s feeling really good and fresh, and there’s a bit of a break after this series [ahead of] an India tour where he’s got a fantastic record. It never felt right for us to go together… I was delighted to hear that Jimmy will keep going and carry on.”