Aussies set for 'tasty' Ashes reception: Broad

Stuart Broad has warned Australia that England will use the power of Edgbaston’s atmosphere to get their Ashes campaign off to a flying start in Birmingham this week. 

Broad is delighted to be locking horns with Steve Smith and David Warner again after the pair’s return from year-long bans. Cameron Bancroft, the third player involved in the Cape Town ball-tampering controversy 16 months ago, could also be back after the opener was named in Australia’s Ashes squad last Friday.

All three can expect to be the target of significant attention from the crowd at Edgbaston, perhaps the most hostile ground in England and a venue where the hosts have not lost in any format since 2014 and have won their last 11 matches, including the World Cup semi-final against Australia earlier this month.

"Edgbaston will be tasty won’t it? I think you use it," Broad told cricket.com.au.

"I think Smith and Warner have been through a hellish last year for making a silly mistake. But a year’s punishment is pretty brutal, isn’t it? They’ve served their time, their punishment and I think the Ashes is a better prospect and series with both those two playing.

"They’re two world-class players, two great competitors, two guys I’ve had brilliant battles with over a decent period of time, so I’m really delighted that they’ll be involved in the Ashes series. I think it makes the game a better spectacle with those two there."

Broad knows all about copping abuse from hostile home crowds. The seamer was public enemy number one during England’s 2013-14 tour of Australia after he had failed to walk during the Trent Bridge Ashes Test the previous northern summer. The former Australia coach Darren Lehmann made sure Broad would be the focus of home crowds when he accused the Englishman of "blatant cheating" during a radio interview before the 2013-14 Ashes series and added: "I just hope the Australian public give it to him right from the word go for the whole summer and I hope he cries and he goes home."

Lehmann later apologised to Broad and told the English quick the comments were "made in jest for banter".

Image Id: B0F22017DAC54FDC95B82510A25B4D4F Image Caption: Broad fielding at the Gabba in 2013 // Getty

Broad dealt with the taunts from Australian crowds that summer admirably, even if England went on to lose the series 5-0. 

Smith and Warner got their fair share of booing and cat-calls during Australia’s World Cup campaign but Broad, speaking before Bancroft had also been called up, is expecting that to go up a notch for the Ashes.

"I think they’d be wrong not to prepare and expect, certainly the Birmingham, Old Trafford and Headingley crowds to be quite lively," he said.

"But I don’t think they’ll experience anything like when Darren Lehmann called for the abuse of me in 2013-14 – an actual call to arms to abuse a player."

Broad insists nobody from the England camp would do likewise before this upcoming series.

"I don’t think so,” he says. “I think the atmosphere somewhere like Birmingham is just naturally brilliant.

"The crowd come to see England try and win but have an amazing time with it. Look, Warner and Smith have played in front of many a big crowd and have had to warm to much abuse over their careers.

"I’m sure the Barmy Army will make them slightly nervous because they are an intimidating unit, but I don’t think it will affect their performances."

Broad believes this Ashes series, which starts on Thursday, is the biggest he has ever played in following England’s historic first World Cup win earlier this month. 

The 33-year-old, playing in his seventh Ashes and looking for his fifth win, said: "I think this is the biggest one I’ve been involved in. I think using the momentum that cricket has gathered from the World Cup victory, this is a real chance for the England team to carry on the brilliant form the white-ball boys have shown and make this country proud of us.

"The 2005 series was obviously very memorable for me as a non-player and then I’ve been involved in home series ever since and had some brilliant memories from all of those – 2009 at The Oval, 2013 at Durham then the 8-15 at Trent Bridge. All series of Ashes cricket in England hold very special memories for me and hopefully this will be the same."

Broad admits he can still barely believe that spell of 8-15 at Trent Bridge four years ago that helped bundle out Australia for 60 on day one of the fourth Test.

"That was a bit of a dream," he said. "It still doesn’t seem real. I saw someone tagged me on Instagram with the scoreboard and I looked at it and thought 'Whaaat?!' It makes no sense."

England, of course, will have to win this forthcoming series to regain the Ashes after their 4-0 hammering in Australia in 2017-18. They were missing Ben Stokes for that series, the totemic all-rounder who was "unavailable for selection" after his involvement in a late-night brawl in Bristol the previous northern summer.

The 28-year-old has since returned to the England team and was the inspiration behind the country’s first-ever World Cup win when his unbeaten knock of 84 in the thrilling tied final against New Zealand at Lord’s – plus the eight runs he hit in the Super Over – won him the man-of-the match award.

And Broad believes Stokes, who has just been re-appointed England’s vice-captain for the first time since Bristol, has a point to prove during this Ashes series after missing the 2017-18 campaign.

"You look back to that winter – pretty much the whole balance of our team disappeared without Stokesy," he said. "So we were just chasing our tail from there really. He’ll be very hungry, yes.

"A lot of people talk about Stokesy’s numbers a lot of the time – and his numbers aren’t amazingly world-class are they? But I couldn’t really care less how many hundreds Ben Stokes scores, how many five-fers the bloke gets. He’s a momentum changer of the game. So he can bowl 12 overs, (take) 2-48, but those two wickets are when nothing was happening in the game and we were in trouble or whatever.

"He might get 40 off 30 balls or something that completely flips the momentum of the game. I think he’s a worse player when he tries to take too much responsibility trying to lead the batting group. That’s Joe Root’s responsibility, the openers’ responsibility.

"Stokesy’s got to be left to change the momentum of games and he’s brilliant when he’s got that freedom of play. And I think Ashes series bring out the best in those sorts of players.

"I see myself as a momentum changer – I don’t care about getting 20 not out. I prefer to try and change the momentum grabbing the ball, trying to get one wicket rather than looking after my figures and getting five for 60. I like that feeling of tweaking a game’s momentum and I think Stokesy’s at his best when doing that."

2019 Qantas Ashes Tour of England

Australia squad: Tim Paine (c), Cameron Bancroft, Pat Cummins, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Michael Neser, James Pattinson, Peter Siddle, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner.

First Test: August 1-5,Edgbaston

Tour match: Australians v Worcestershire, August 7-9

Second Test: August 14-18,Lord's

Third Test: August 22-26, Headingley

Tour match: Australians v Derbyshire, August 29-31

Fourth Test: September 4-8, Old Trafford

Fifth Test: September 12-16, The Oval