New Delhi, Dec 22 Former England pacer Stuart Broad has doubled down on his assertion that the current Australian side is the weakest Ashes team England have faced in 15 years, despite the hosts referencing his comments during their celebrations in Adelaide.
Ahead of the series, Broad had claimed Australia were at their lowest ebb since England last won the Ashes in Australia in 2010–11, describing his assessment as “not an opinion” but “a fact”. He cited Australia's transition and uncertainty around selection as the basis for his view.
Those remarks clearly resonated within the Australian camp. After Australia secured the Ashes with victory in the third Test in Adelaide, Marnus Labuschagne referenced Broad’s comments during a post-match interview with the ABC.
Travis Head later added fuel to the fire by posting a photo of himself alongside captain Pat Cummins on social media, captioned “Is it 2010 yet?” followed by three laughing emojis.
Speaking following Australia’s 82-run win that gave the hosts an unassailable 3-0 series lead, Broad maintained that his original comments still stood, arguing England had failed to perform anywhere near their potential.
“Do I regret saying that? No. I did say Australia would have to play very badly and England would have to play very well. Australia haven't played very badly, and England haven't played very well,” Broad said on his For The Love of Cricket podcast.
Broad also highlighted several factors he believed left Australia exposed coming into the series, including Cummins missing the opening two Tests, Josh Hazlewood being unavailable for the entire campaign, and Usman Khawaja managing back spasms.
"From England's point of view, what would they have liked coming into this series? A lot of things have gone England's way. But England haven't been good enough ultimately. Australia have been relentless in what they've done. Do I think the 2013-14 (Australian team) man-for-man was a better side? Yes, probably still. I don't think individually they are better than any other team since 2010-11, but they've been relentless in the pressure they've managed to put on England.”
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