Stuart Broad is not thinking about his future beyond next summer’s Ashes as he aims to prove his fitness for England‘s upcoming Test series against India.
The paceman is currently working his way back from an ankle injury sustained playing for Nottinghamshire against Worcestershire in the Specsavers County Championship last month.
Having had a few injections, Broad has started to increase his bowling workload this week with a view to playing in Notts’ Division One game against Surrey at Trent Bridge from Sunday.
He is hoping to come through that four-day game unscathed with England taking on India in the first of five Tests at Edgbaston from August 1.
At the age of 32, Broad is in no mood to slow down and has aspirations to follow in the footsteps of his new-ball partner James Anderson.
Asked whether he will still be around after the 2019 Ashes, Broad said: “I think it is quite dangerous to look as far ahead as that. It can take your mind off what is really important.
“I don’t want to look too far ahead, but a huge goal of mine is to regain the Ashes in 2019. That is number one, top of the list, but what is going to make me a better cricketer in the short term, is to be able to be in that team fit and firing and be the guy Rooty (Joe Root) looks to.
“I really need to shorten my mindset and get things that are really reachable now and get things to push towards, rather than look to ends of careers because once you do that you slow down as a person and I am not at the stage of wanting to do that.”
Broad was the subject of criticism following below-par winter tours of Australia and New Zealand.
But he showed signs of regaining his form in the second Test against Pakistan at Headingley last month, taking match figures of six for 66 in an innings victory, before injury struck on county duty.
“I think in 2018 I am averaging 15 or 16 with the ball, something like that,” Broad, who is a Hardy’s ambassador, said.
“I have had a brilliant year stats wise and I feel really good.
“The action is in a good place, I am getting good bounce and good pace and I am bowling at people in the nets I have bowled at for years and they are saying ‘this is the quickest I have seen you bowl for a couple of years’.”
With the schedule as it is this summer, specialist Test players such as Broad, Anderson and Alastair Cook are fresh after seeing little red-ball action.
But Broad accepts rotation in the bowling department may come into skipper Joe Root’s thinking against India.
“It’s very, very dependant on the pitches we get,” he said.
“It is an aim to play all five Test matches and that is why we are trying to go in as fresh as possible.
“But if the pitches play as well as they probably should do with the weather we have had, it would not be unheard of to miss one and I think we will need a bowling unit to win this Test series.”
Despite beating England at home two years ago, India were hammered the last time they toured this country in 2014.
“It is a huge series. We know the quality of their team,” Broad added.
“You only have to look down their one-day team and they have all bases covered. You get a very similar feeling with their red-ball team.
“They completely outplayed us in India in 2016 and I think they are playing a pretty similar side, very much a team Virat Kohli has put together and is driving forward.”
