End of an Era: Strauss Announces Retirement from Professional Cricket

It's fair to say that today is a sad day for English cricket; but it is also a day we can look back at someone’s career and appreciate all that he has done for England as a player and as a fantastic captain. 

Andrew Strauss announced his retirement from professional cricket. He's been one of our favourite captains thus far and we doubt that's going to change anytime soon. As sad as we are to see ‘Straussey’ retire, we believe he’s made the right choice for the England team. He stated in the press conference earlier today that his decision to retire from cricket was purely based on the fact that he has not been scoring runs like he should have and that he believes he’s ‘run his race.’ It is nice to see cricketers out there who call it quits with their dignity and integrity intact. Shows that they do not go after money and fame like some of them do.

Strauss has done so much over the years since his test debut in 2004. He scored a century on debut, has gotten 7000+ test runs, has gone on to win 100 Test caps, captained the side in 50 of those matches, scored 21 Test centuries & six ODI hundreds, has been part of three Ashes wins in which he's captained two and has helped England get to No.1 in Test cricket! The list goes on! Since the appointment of his captaincy —and Andy Flower coming in as England coach— we've had the opportunity to see the team grow and overcome so many obstacles and boundaries to reach goals. He has stressed over and over the importance of trust and respect within a team. We believe the two Andys were the backbone behind building that trust and respect within the strong England side we see today; and for that we believe we should thank and applaud them.

Integrity, humility, dedication, magnanimity, assertiveness, fairness, calmness and selflessness are a few of the many qualities Strauss had! He epitomises a great leader. He’s been a selfless cricketer, shying away from the limelight whenever possible, when it came to personal milestones. That is rare in the world of cricket nowadays with so many players caring more about their personal fame, fortune and reputation, rather than the team’s overall image. 

We believe he’s been one of England’s BEST captains so far! We will miss the talented, calm, cool, smiley, level-headed and lovely character whenever we watch England come out to bat or field. He’s an England legend in our eyes.

Before concluding, we’ve picked our top 5 moments in Straussey’s career...

TOP 5 ANDREW STRAUSS MOMENTS

1. Test debut and maiden century at Lord’s his home ground...

2. One of the defining moments of the 2005 Ashes series - catching Adam Gilchrist off of Andrew Flintoff at Trent Bridge...

3. Captained the England side in England's first Ashes win down under since 1987...

4. Took England to the top of world Test rankings by defeating India...

5. 100th Test appearance and 50 as captain at Lord’s...

We want to wish the very best of luck to you, Straussey. We are proud of your achievements and we want to thank you for all the great memories. It has been an absolute pleasure to watch you play, captain and lead the England team to glory. Thank you!

As one era comes to a close another begins. All the best to Alastair Cook, the newly appointed England Test captain. May this be a long and successful career as England's Test captain! 

Will never forget the day Strauss demolished his sunglasses - not on purpose obviously! Enjoy the clip below ;)

~ The Broadettes ~

Meeting the blonde beanpole, Stuart Broad

You know how you have everything planned for when you meet your favourite cricketer, actor, musician etc and everything tend to crumble at that critical moment when you do meet them? Yep, that happened to me, yesterday at the Oval (Day 1 of the 1st Test match against the South Africans).

For those who do not know me that well, I have been a fan of  Stuart Broad  for over 5 years now. I have always wanted to meet him but never had the opportunity because I live in Canada. It may sound stupid, weird, crazy or even a bit melodramatic to some of you cricket lovers, but when you’ve supported someone over the years simply because he/she is a talented cricketer, a down-to-earth character who has an unbelievable passion for the game and who is not money driven like most people these day, it is just natural to want to meet that said person. Not only for the sake of being able to tell everyone you've met him/her but also to thank him/her for being the person that he/she is. At least I’d like to think so. Stuart Broad in my opinion is a rare gem in the world of cricket.

Despite being alone (because my friend/fellow Broadette Jayna had to leave early) and not knowing how I’d be able to get a hold of the Stuart, I stood near the pavilion of  The Oval  after the match with a few cricket fans waiting to catch a glimpse of the England and South African players. I had only one thing in mind. Meet Stuart, get his book signed, somehow manage to take a photo and leave! :) 

Most players (not going to mention names as I'm sure they just wanted to get back to the hotel soon) just walked past the awaiting fans. Stuart and Matt Prior came along and everyone started yelling out Stuart's name. Kinda felt bad for Matty P cause he's an awesome person as well, but no one bothered talking to him.  As soon as I spotted Stuart, I just extended my book to him and was talking to him while he signed the book. It was weird and a bit funny now reliving the moment. I remember being a nervous-wreck. Forgot to mention who I was (he knows me by name) but somehow managed to get the following words out: 'Stuart, would you mind posing for a photo really quick?' He looked at me and said ' Yeah of course!' He proved something right there. He said he never turned down a photo request by a fan. The fact that he did not know me right then, but still agreed to pose for a photo speaks volumes about the guy he is. One of the fans who were standing outside with me wanting to shake hands with the players, volunteered to take a photo of me and Stuart :) Whoever you are, THANK YOU! :) 

I thanked Stuart and the guy who took the photo really quick (don't think they heard me though) and ran like the wind. Forgot which way the tube station was due to all the excitement! Best day of my life - to date! Will never forget that moment! Right after, I tweeted Stuart and thanked him for the photo and autograph. He messaged me back saying 'just seen this. glad it happened'. Little moments like these make fans like me very happy. Truly was the best day ever. 

To those who haven't met Stuart yet, when you do meet him, stay calm. He's the most sweetest/friendliest person ever. He won't run off if he knows you want a picture and an autograph :) 

Let me finish off this blog post by sharing my photo with you :)

Me (wearing the Broad #8 shirt) with the fantastic man himself, Stuart Broad

Happiest girl on the planet! :) Next time when I do meet him - and there will be a next time - I'm gonna stay calm and not panic ;) Will definitely have a proper conversation then! :)

Jay x

Broad Appeal Tournament Cancelled

Some of us Broadettes were planning on meeting up at this 6 a side charity game. Sadly, it's been cancelled. For more details go to the Broad Appeal website.

Tom Maynard

Just heard the news about Tom Maynard. So awful. Our thoughts go out to his friends and family.

A note from a young fan :)

Hey! My name is Aaliya Syed and I live in Pakistan. I am 14 years old. I have been a cricket fan since I was 9. Cricket is my obsession (even more since broady is playing). The cricketing world is an amazing platform to unite fans all over the world together and gives everyone a chance to express their feelings.

I am a huge fan of Stuart Broad as he is one of the cutest and most dashing players of all time. He has the ideal personality and his passion for cricket affects me too. I saw him in an England vs Pakistan match which was his first ever international match. When I saw him I actually thought that he is made for the England Crickcet Team. To me, he he is the reason the England team shines during matches. He is the heartbeat of this Broadette. I can see his strength whenever he playes a match.

Lastly, I would like to wish him the best of luck with his cricketing career. I would love to meet him one day.

5 of 5 Stars to Bowled Over by Stuart Broad

An Ashes Celebration: My Side of the Story

Stuart Broad's magnificent spell of five for thirty-seven in the final and decisive Test against Australia at the Oval won him the man of the match award and proved a major contribution to England regaining the 2009 Ashes. Stuart ended up as England's leading wicket taker in a series which had also shown him to be a highly accomplished batsman. Stuart is the son of Chris Broad, himself a former England opening batsman in an Ashes winning series, and Stuart has clearly inherited his father's natural ability. In BOWLED OVER - AN ASHES CELEBRATION he refers to a promising cricket career at school, his development as a player at county level with Leicester and Nottingham and to his early games for England. But first and foremost this lavishly illustrated book is devoted to the ultimate and thrilling success of the England team that beat the Australian side. Stuart describes the highs and lows of this, his first Ashes campaign, which ended so triumphantly. His achievements allied to his competitive character and youthful good looks have already made him a hugely popular figure with the cricket public.

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Well, there was no cricket again today so I flipped through Stuart Broad's book again. I read it straight through when I first picked up a copy and I was blown away by all the life events that made Broady who he was as a cricketer up until 2009.

I was actually still quite new to the sport in 2009 (I'm originally from the USA) and this was the first ever book I'd read on the subject. Since reading Broad's book though, I've enjoyed many more. Especially Marcus Trescothick's autobiography: Coming Back to me. What a brave, honest and talented man.

I am really looking forward to Stuart Broad's next book. I understand it's due out in October this year. He's done so much since 2009 and I know there will be loads more growth in the elite sportsman himself and in his cricketing. So excited! I'm quite bookish, if you haven't noticed by now.

Jay has done a review of this book too, and Elizabeth will be providing one for this blog soon.

In keeping with the theme of books, here's a classic lolcats...

Aha!

When I went to see my first ever international game of cricket at Edgbaston in 2009 it was monumentally abandoned due to torrential rain. I was sorely depressed by this. It would have been the first time I'd get to see you know who play live. No, not Voldemort, Stuart Broad.

Now look! Play has been abandoned once again when I was going to drive up to Birmingham for some cricket watching this week. Hence, the AHA! of the blog post title.

Bad luck is what I've got when it comes to open air stadium attending of international cricket for me. Maybe it's the fact that I'm American and I'm like supposed to stick to watching baseball by law.

Whatever.