England cricketer, Stuart Broad is now considered to be an all-rounder of genuine international class following his world record breaking summer and we caught up with him ahead of the upcoming Ashes tour to find out his thoughts on England's chances.
In the second of our two-part interview we ask Stuart for an Ashes prediction; where he would prefer to bat for England; and if the pressure on him to score runs has increased after his maiden Test century...
Does Andrew Flintoff's retirement make things easier or harder for England heading into the Ashes?
Freddie was a great player for England over many years and I think it was difficult with his injury record in that he didn't play regularly for England. He never had a long period of time in the team to find a consistency of the team learning to play with him and him learning to play with the team.
The big question was 'do we play five bowlers of four bowlers?' And does Fred bat 6,7 or 8? But he was fantastic in a couple of series - the Ashes in 2005 for example. We wouldn't have won that without him so you can look back on his career and say that he won some really important games for England, but I think since he stopped playing in 2009 we have found quite a good consistency to the team and I think going to the Ashes now as opposed to four years ago is the fact that there's not loads of questions over our team.
I think people know we've got a solid team and we've been very consistent with selection, whereas before I think Freddie had been out all year and just come back and taken over the captaincy, people weren't sure if [Ashley] Giles or Monty [Panesar] were going to play and [Chris] Read or [Geraint] Jones and it was very much a doubt in the squad and this year we're going in very confident.
'People know that I can go and get a hundred now'
Does the fact that you've now proven you can score big runs at Test level increase expectations on yourself with the bat?
It does, but only from me. I’ve always set high standards with the bat and I see that as a stepping-stone to moving forward in the future, going on to score big hundreds and helping the team in that way. It does increase the pressure because people know that I can go and get a hundred now it’s up to me to consistently try and get as close to it as possible. There’s no bigger critic than myself and I know when I’m not performing to my best and I know when to put myself under pressure, but that knock can only be a positive and I go to Australia full of confidence.
'My ideal spot is number eight'
Do you see yourself as a number seven after that innings?
My ideal spot is number eight. I think we’re very fortunate in the fact that we’ve got a number seven in Matt Prior who averages 50 in Test match cricket so those extra runs at numbers six to nine really help you get into good positions in matches and that’s a big advantage of our team.
'We've got to focus on the first hour in Brisbane'
Your father had a very impressive record in Ashes Tests in Australia. Is there a part of you that wants to match or better his performances there?
Of course, yes. He was part of the last England squad to have won the Ashes in Australia so it’s certainly in my sights and it’s something I’d love to do, but we can’t focus on January and Sydney, we’ve got to focus on the first hour in Brisbane because you can’t look past how big that hour is.
'I think the criticism [of Ponting] has been a little bit harsh'
Ricky Ponting’s come in for criticism lately. Do you still see him as the right man to lead the hosts into the series this winter?
Yes, of course. He’s been a fantastic leader for many years and he’s a world class player. I think the criticism has probably been a little bit harsh. He’s captain of an evolving team and lost a lot of key players in a short space of time and that’s tricky for any captain, but he obviously wants Australia to do well and has high standards for them and we know what a powerhouse team they are. We just need to focus on what we do well and if we do that we stand a fantastic chance.
'I think we'll win, but it will be really tight'
Finally, if someone forced you into making a prediction for this Ashes series, what final result would you predict?
Well, someone would pretty much have to have a gun to my head as I don’t want to go down the prediction route – the old Glenn McGrath five nil line – but I think it’s a fantastic opportunity and as players we’re very aware of that but we have to make sure we’re ready for the battle in Australia, so I think we’ll win, but it will be a really tight series.
So, you’re going for a 3-2 England win then?
No, because there will be draws. I’m not doing to say a specific scoreline. I think we’ll win, but there will be the odd draw in there as well.
Keep up to speed with the latest from England's Ashes tour at our dedicated event page here
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