Stuart Broad 2.0

wonder if this Broad is "juiced up"

The only batsman Broad has dismissed more often in Tests is Michael Clarke (11 times).

Broad averages 23.81 against PuP !!

Interesting numbers and a real stark comparison. Broad has taken more Test match wickets over the last 3 years than any other bowler. When he gets in one of those spells such as at Trent Bridge last year and the Wanderers this year, he really is unplayable. 

I think a large part of the major improvement is Broad's maturation as a bowler. In 2011, despite having appeared in 37 Tests, he was still 25. I know Broady has also spoke at some length about his fondness for Ottis and how much he has helped to improve his bowling.

Isn't Broad now the top bowler in the world after what he did to the South Africans?

While there's no doubt that when he gets in one of them zones, he's hard to beat. The problem though is that he doesn't get in them zones nearly as much as I think he should do.

That is being a bit harsh, isn't it? It is also not born out in the numbers. Broad has more Test match wickets over the last 3 years than any other bowler. He has 9 five wicket hauls, three more than the next fast bowler on the list, and his strike-rate (49.6) is sixth best among all fast bowlers.

Steyn has been the best fast bowler over the last 3 years, but after that, you can make a very strong case that Broad has been the next best seamer. The only other two pace bowlers that are in the conversation are Mitchell Johnson (now retired) and Josh Hazlewood.

Maybe I am being a little harsh like you say, but I just feel as though he could have done more.

While those figures speak for themself, he tends to lose his way sometimes and when he bowls to a plan and it doesn't work, he seems to tail off a little. Maybe he's a conference bowler?

Over the last 3 years, in 71 innings, Broad has gone wicketless just 11 times - so 15 per cent. For comparison, Steyn, the best fast bowler in the world, went wicketless 6 times in 36 innings - 17 per cent. The only pace bowler with a lower percentage of going wicketless over this period was Mitchell Johnson (13 per cent) but he did so in just 45 innings. Starc, another one of the games elite quicks, has gone wicketless 27 per cent of the time.

Which ever way you look at the numbers, I really do think this is unfair to Stuart Broad. He has been tremendously consistent, as evidenced by a strike-rate of under 50 over this period. Are there any innings in particular you can point out where you feel that Broad has lost his way?

The tests he played before July 2011 the statistics were fair to average. If he'd have played them 37 tests likes he's played the ones in the last 3 years, then we would be talking about a truly world class exceptional bowler.

Like I said, maybe it does sound harsh but I just want an English player that as clearly got the ability, to actually come out and show they are world class. It seems to be an English trait that potential never quite develops into the talent that it should be.

In 2011, Broad was just 25, he was young and still learning his trade as a fast bowler. It takes time for a fast bowler to mature. Broad himself has even admitted that it took him a number of years to finally have the confidence and experience to pitch the ball up to get it to move. He has also worked with Ottis Gibson to keep him more upright in his action, and lean back just a little more in his delivery, allowing him to hit a good length hard.

Even when you take that into consideration, the only pace bowlers with more wickets than Broad before the age of 26 are Kapil Dev, Waqar Younis, Ian Botham, Ishant Sharma and Dale Steyn. Since Broad made his debut against Sri Lanka in December 2007, the only bowlers with more Test wickets are Anderson and Steyn. While he may not be on Steyn's level (and very few in the history of the game have been), he has been one of the best bowlers of his generation. His numbers are eerily similar to those of Jimmy Anderson. Would you say that Jimmy is not world class?