Ashes 2023: Retiring Stuart Broad says sealing England’s triumph in final ball of his career ‘pretty cool’

Stuart Broad bade quite the emotional farewell to cricket on Monday, two days after announcing his decision to retire from all forms of the game.

The 37-year-old pacer, who had taken the cricketing world by surprise with his announcement after stumps on Day 3 and received a guard of honour from the Australian the following morning, bowed out with figures of 2/42 and 2/62 in the final match of his professional career.

Fittingly, it was Broad who sealed England’s 49-run victory by grabbing the last two wickets of the Australian chase, getting both Todd Murphy (18) and wicketkeeper-batter Alex Carey (28) caught-behind as the hosts leveled the five-match series in style to maintain their unbeaten record at home against the ‘Old Enemy’.

Broad thus not only finishes his career with a six off the last delivery that he faced, but also with a wicket off his last ball, and described the achievement as “pretty cool”.

“It was absolutely wonderful. The crowd were unbelievable. It was so loud and we just jumped on the back of that. To contribute to the team with two wickets is very special.

“When you make that decision you wonder what your last ball will be so to take a wicket to win an Ashes Test match is pretty cool,” Broad told Sky Sports after England’s victory.

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Broad had pulled Mitchell Starc for a six in the morning session of the fourth delivery, clearing the midwicket fence that was met with a massive roar from the capacity Oval crowd. England though, were bowled out for 395 the very next over after Murphy trapped James Anderson LBW, setting Australia a daunting 384 to win.

Australian openers Usman Khawaja and David Warner not only managed to bat through to lunch, but till the drinks interval of the second session before rain made its way to south London and washed out the remainder of the day’s play.

And though the visitors lost a few wickets after Khawaja (72) and Warner’s (60) 140-run opening stand, Steve Smith (54) and Travis Head (43) appeared to put them back on the path to victory with a solid fifth-wicket partnership that was touching the century mark.

That was until off-spinner Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes triggered a collapse during the final session in which the Aussies lost five wickets for just 30 runs to collapse to 294/8.

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Wicketkeeper-batter Alex Carey and Murphy gave the Englishmen a bit of a scare with their 35-run ninth-wicket partnership before Broad came in and finished the job for the Englishmen in one final spell, bowing out of the sport with 604 Test wickets to his name.