You can admit it now – if Stuart Broad was an Aussie, he’d be your favourite player

It’s been said many times that Stuart Broad is the most Australian of English cricketers. 

His tenacity, his will to win and, yes, his tendency to play a little fast and loose with the spirit of the game would stand him in good stead with some of the best to come from this country over the years, and indeed, make him stand out from plenty of his own countrymen.

What has often been held up as a virtue of Australian cricket – as recently as the Alex Carey stumping in this very series – has similarly been seen as a failure of English cricket, a deficiency in the key areas of ‘wanting it’ and other woolly concepts.

Broad might not have threatened to break anyone’s arm, to get them at the Gabba or indeed, smuggling something from Bunnings down his trousers, but he’s never shied away from being the hate figure for the opposition, or indeed, from smashing the ball to first slip and staying exactly where he was.

There’s always been a competitive edge to him that few of his countrymen – for the record, I am one of them – have shared. It’s what will, over time, end up endearing Broad to Australians over the long run.