West Indies vs England 2014: Stuart Broad fitness concern before World T20
Stuart Broad
England’s premier fast bowler Stuart Broad will sit out the last two T20 matches against West Indies, in order to be fit for the forthcoming World Twenty20. Broad revealed that he has been managing the knee problem with injections, but after the first Twenty20 at Antigua he was suffering from patellar tendinitis.
England will be hoping for positive news from Broad on the eve of the upcoming World Twenty20 which begins in Bangladesh on March 16. England’s first match, however, is on March 22 against New Zealand.
With a week and five days to go, Broad said that he should be fine for the first match against New Zealand. “I’ve had injections for a while now, throughout the winter, it’s been getting stiffer and stiffer,” he said. “I caught my knee in the ground in Antigua and it swelled up. I struggled to move it a little bit, so I won’t be playing the next couple. I should be okay assuming the injection works, which generally they do. It gradually got worse throughout the winter, with the amount of bowling I’ve been doing – no real break – so it’s something I need to act on now to make sure I’m fit and firing for the World T20.”
Broad may require an operation for the knee problem, but he was hopeful of taking part in England’s home series. “I’ll have to have a rehab period at some stage in the next 12 months, between six to ten weeks. But there’s a decent period at the end of the English season which I can look at probably – or maybe four weeks in April,” he said
“I can’t keep waking up every day in agony, and surviving training. The injection should sort that out and if it means missing two Twenty20s in the West Indies when we’ve got a World Cup in Bangladesh, I’m not too frustrated about that.”
Stuart Broad bowled only two overs in West Indies innings, and subsequently, he was limping back with injury. Thereafter he didn’t come out to bowl for England which created a cause of concern in the England camp. Since Broad will not be taking part in rest of the two T20s, Eoin Morgan will be leading the side.
Stuart Broad tweeted the following:
No panic with the knee, had it a long time. The workload over the winter has got it to a point it needs treatment. 7 days should be fine
— Stuart Broad (@StuartBroad8) March 9, 2014
Stuart Broad’s career has been affected by injuries over the last three years. He managed in England’s tour of India, and later was ruled out of 2010-11 Ashes tour and thereafter he was suffering from stomach and rib injuries.
Even in England’s disastrous tour of Australia this time, Broad took rest for the first two ODIs and from there on, he played only six one-day matches and four T20 games and also a warm-up match in West Indies.
Broad was the captain of England in the one-dayers against West Indies in the absence of Alastair Cook. He’s also the captain of England’s T20 team. Therefore, Broad is an important part of the England team. He’s not only the captain, but also leading wicket taker in T20 matches.
If Broad is unfit for World T20, England have few back-up pacers who can inflict the damage to the opposition’s batting line-up. Tim Bresnan can be handy on slow wickets as he has the ability to vary his pace constantly. Jade Dernbach has plenty of experience, and Chris Jordan is an upcoming England’s fast bowler. While this tournament would be a stern test for Jordan, it would give him an opportunity to prove himself on sub-continent wickets.
England’s coach Ashley Giles would be concerned over Broad’s fitness problem. Since these are the few back-up options available to Giles, England’s performance in the tournament will be below par. Only Tim Bresnan and Dernbach have the experience. Jordan is playing only his second T20 match and hence, he may not respond to pressure situations.
England also have some issues with Joe Root and Eoin Morgan. Joe Root has been suffering from broken thumb and Morgan has not recovered from knee injury. So, England’s preparation for the tournament will need some work.