Stuart Broad began on Wednesday by advocating Sam Curran as a better new-ball option than himself against a West Indies Board President’s XI and ended it by taking a hat-trick with the old one in a productive bowling performance from England.
Broad was part of a ‘think-tank’ that felt Curran, who has been swinging the Duke ball prodigiously in the nets here, should open alongside Jimmy Anderson on the second day of England’s first practice match ahead of next week’s first Test.
And the move proved a sound one when Curran, who has made such an impressive introduction to Test cricket, took two early wickets against a hapless home side with assistance from a sub-standard pitch at the Three Ws Oval.
Stuart Broad celebrates taking a hat-trick against West Indies Board XI on Wednesday
But the senior man was not to be outdone and Broad, operating off his new short run-up, made his own mark on his belated introduction to the England attack by talking the ninth, 10thand, with the home side allowed to bat all day, 11thwicket of the innings.
On the day Olly Stone was cruelly ruled out of the tour with a stress injury in his lower back, England demonstrated they still have plenty of bowling options ahead of a three-Test series in the Caribbean.
True, all three of Broad’s hat-trick victims were tail-enders and the third of them was Bryan Charles rather than Brian Charles Lara but they all count.
He added a fourth victim in five balls immediately after tea in the more recognised batting figure of Jermaine Blackwood and ended up with four for 19 in the home side’s ridiculous looking 203 for 19 in what officially will be recorded as a draw.
Broad was in fine form against West Indies Board President’s XI in the warm-up match
Broad, who was left out of two of England’s three Tests in Sri Lanka, will be happy with that as he continues his attempt to peak in time for next summer’s Ashes having initially remodelled his wrist position and now his approach to the crease.
Certainly the intervention of Broad, who has two hat-tricks in Test cricket to his name, added another poser to England’s first Test bowling puzzle as they try to come up with the best combination to secure only their second series win in the Caribbean in 50 years.
England used three spinners in their 3-0 victory in Sri Lanka but may well go down to one for the first Test next Wednesday at the Kensington Oval on what is expected to be the
