Veteran fast bowler Stuart Broad is just four wickets shy of becoming England’s leading wicket-taker in the Ashes history. Broad has picked 125 wickets in 34 Ashes Tests and is only behind the legendary English all-rounder Ian Botham who has picked 128 wickets in 32 games.
Botham averaged 28.04 and took 58 innings to get to 128 wickets whereas Broad has picked his 125 wickets so far at an average of 29.32 in 61 innings.
The 35-year-old has been around the English circuit for more than a decade, having made his Test debut way back in 2009. His new ball partner, James Anderson has 112 wickets to his name. Broad’s 5/101 in the first innings of the New year’s Test at Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) took him past Bob Willis who has 123 Ashes wickets to his name.
Broad has eight five-wicket hauls for England in the Ashes, most by any English bowler. In total, the former England’s T20I skipper has 19 five-wicket hauls to his name in the longest format and a total of 536 wickets, second most for England after Anderson.
Over the years, the tall Nottinghamshire seamer has produced quite a few unforgettable spells in the Ashes. In 2015, Broad picked 8/15 at Trent Bridge, Nottingham, which helped the hosts bundle out Australia for just 60 runs. The other standout Ashes spell of Broad's would be his 5/37 in 2009 at the Oval in London. He was also England’s leading wicket-taker in the 2019 edition of the Ashes, having picked 23 wickets.
With second innings of the Sydney Test still remaining to go with the last Test at Hobart, the 152 Test veteran will have a chance to go past the magical number of 128 in this series itself. Before the SCG Test, Broad was disappointed with the team selection as he was not included in the first and third Test despite having a major impact on Australian opener David Warner in the home Ashes in 2019.
