Former England pacer Stuart Broad said that though he could have played for a couple of years more, he wanted to finish at the top and has no regrets in his career. Broad retired from international cricket after the fifth and final Ashes Test at The Oval earlier this year, with 604 Test wickets in 167 matches and overall 847 international wickets in 344 matches.
“I do feel within myself that I could have played for another couple of years but I wanted to finish at the top, finish in an England shirt and to be able to control that myself. I had to try and go at the right time,” Broad told Sky Sports in an exclusive interview.
“I have had no regrets yet which I think tells me in my gut that it was the right decision. Because my teammates have not walked onto the field in their whites with the England cap on, I have not had a moment of realisation like, ‘wow, I won’t ever do that again’.”
“Every player I have spoken to, from different eras, has had that one moment of ‘I am not a professional cricketer any more’.”
“Whether that comes when England go to India or when Nottinghamshire take the field in April at Trent Bridge, I’m not sure, [but] I couldn’t have finished in a better way,” concluded Broad.
The pacer said that he loved walking off the field at The Oval, beating Australia and getting the two final wickets. He also said that he saw his family after winning the Test.
“If I played for another 10 years, I would never have been able to repeat that finish. I have no regrets about finishing,” said Broad.
“To have that emotion of running on for my final spell with people knowing it was my last-ever session of cricket gave me emotions that will live with me forever.”
“Winning the Test was the biggest thing for me – the emotion of the crowd and winning the game. It would have been devastating for me to walk off for the final time having lost a Test to the Aussies.”
