Chris Broad’s son Stuart made his Test debut for England in 2007 at Colombo against Sri Lanka with Michael Vaughan as captain.
On Wednesday, during the fourth Ashes Test at Old Trafford, England’s Stuart Broad became only the sixth bowler to take 600 Test wickets when dismissing Australia’s Travis Head. The 37-year-old pacer joined the likes of Muttiah Muralitharan (800 wickets), Shane Warne (708), James Anderson (688), and Anil Kumble (619) by getting Head caught in the deep for 48. Only two quicks in this category, Broad and Anderson, are still active, and both of them have taken 600 wickets in Tests. Broad entered his 166th Test with 598 wickets to his name.
Broad struck early when he had Usman Khawaja lbw for three, leaving Australia 15-1 after England captain Ben Stokes won the toss and opted to field on Wednesday.
He didn’t get his first big wicket until his 11th over when left-hander Head hooked a bouncer and Joe Root took a low catch as he ran in from the boundary at fine leg.
After losing Head, Australia was reduced to 189-5, and England, behind the series 2-1 with two matches remaining, is looking for a victory to keep its Ashes hopes alive.
Broad’s two wickets against Australia on Wednesday pushed him beyond Ian Botham into first place all-time for England in Test bowling against Australia with 150.
Broad, the son of former England batsman Chris Broad, made his Test debut in 2007 for Michael Vaughan’s team against Sri Lanka in Colombo.
Broad, who played for Leicestershire at the time but is now with Nottinghamshire, had a successful high school batting career but didn’t start bowling till later.
Twenty times in his international career, he has taken five or more wickets in an inning, earning him a reputation as a match-winner.
He has taken at least 10 wickets in a Test match three times, and his late seam movement has consistently been a problem for the best batters in the world.
Broad’s career-best return was 8-15 at Trent Bridge in 2015, when England beat Australia in the Ashes. Anderson was out with an injury.
Broad also produced a brilliant 169 in 2010 when playing Pakistan at Lord’s, but his batting declined after he was hit in the face by a bouncer from India’s Varun Aaron.
Broad, the only England bowler with two Test hat-tricks, has taken wickets at an average of slightly over 27.
The first one was in 2011 against India, when he took 6-46, and the second was in 2014 against Sri Lanka.
