CHRIS BROAD: It’s a brave decision for Stuart to retire but he feels he is doing the right thing

Stuart Broad announced his retirement from cricket on Saturday night and walked out to bat on day four of the final Ashes Test match with his bowling partner James Anderson. 

It was an emotional day in south London, with the pair stepping out to receive rapturous applause from the crowd inside The KIA Oval and a guard of honour from Australia. 

As ever, Broad entertained in the middle, smashing a huge six off Mitchell Starc with what turned out to be the final ball he will face in Test cricket.

His family, including fiancée Mollie King, dad Chris and mum Carole were all watching on from the stands as Broad subsequently went out to lead England’s bowling attack in Australia’s second innings.

Former England batsman and father of the England bowler, Chris, spoke to Mail Sport’s David Coverdale at The Oval on Sunday. 

Stuart Broad (pictured) announced on Saturday that he would be retiring from cricket ahead of the fourth day of the fifth Ashes Test match at the Oval 

Chris Broad (right) has been speaking with Mail Online’s David Coverdale and says he believes it ‘was a brave decision for Stuart (left) to retire’

Broad was given a guard of honour by the Australian side as he and his bowling partner James Anderson walked out on to the pitch to finish England’s second innings at The Oval 

We have obviously known that Stuart’s career was coming to an end. At 37, how much longer can you go on? So Stuart and I had spoken about this for a while.

At the start of the season, he was thinking this was going to be his last series. But once the series started, he was enjoying it so much that he was unsure. I think he acknowledged that in his interviews on Saturday night, when he admitted he only made the decision at 8.30pm on Friday.

We found out at eight o’clock on Saturday morning when he phoned us to tell us that he was going to announce that this was his last game. Because we had already talked about it, it wasn’t that emotional for me. I just thought it was sensible.

When you think about it, it is absolutely the right thing. That is easy for me to say, but for him as well, he just feels that he is doing the right thing at the right time.

It’s a brave decision when you are still fit enough to play. But he has got to feel in his gut what the right thing to do is, and he has made that decision and I think it is the brave and correct one.

He loves the occasion and there is no bigger occasion than an Ashes match in England for him to be able to say goodbye. It is brilliant.

I think he would have loved to have ended at Trent Bridge if there was a Test match there. But to end here at the Oval, in front of a full house, is very fitting. He actually grew into English cricket here in 2009 when he got five wickets against Australia. That was when he realised he had a future in the England cricket team.

Broad said in a column with Mail Sport that he was ‘retiring at the very top of his game’ 

His mother Carloe (left) spoke with BBC Test Match Special reporter Jonathan Agnew at The Oval today and said that now was the perfect time for her son to retire 

The guard of honour the Australians gave him was lovely. There have been a lot of battles between England and Australian cricketers over the years, but there is such a camaraderie.

I still see some of the Australians that I played against in the 1980s and we always have a chat and talk about what has been going on. That sort of thing will continue with Stuart.

To have that respect and understanding from the opposition at this time when he has decided to retire is an amazing thing. I am sure he will be very grateful to the Australians for doing that.

The round of applause he got at the start of the game, and when he came out to field, and when he went out to the boundary to chase one, was just brilliant. And it was appropriate that his batting ended with him hitting a six – and it was a good six as well.

He acknowledged us sitting up here and I think he is soaking up everything he possibly can in these last couple of days. It is great because those memories will stay with him forever. It will be sad if we don’t get a result of some sort at the end of this game and it ends up being a damp squib.

Broad (pictured) would step out into the middle of the field and smash a six with what could be his final ball in an England Test match

Broad (middle) would go on to lead the bowling for England on Sunday but the home side struggled to remove David Warner (right) and Usman Khawaja 

Earlier in the series, Broad (middle left) amassed his 600th Test wicket for England, putting him behind Anderson as second in England’s all-time Test wicket takers tally from 167 matches

Stuart has had an extraordinary career. He wanted to get to 100 Test matches, but to get 67 Test matches over that, and still be bowling as well as he has always bowled, perhaps even better than he has bowled, is just amazing.

It is testament to his physical fitness and the set-up of the England cricket side that both he and Jimmy Anderson have been able to go on as long as they have done, when so many other bowlers have fallen down the wayside because of injury. Jimmy is carrying on amazingly for 41. Those two are just extraordinary animals, they really are.

Commentating is a different animal altogether. I tried that when I finished playing. You’ve got to know your facts. There are some good commentators around. You have to learn fairly quickly on the job.

But I am sure he will be given every opportunity to learn the process. They don’t have a bowler on Sky’s commentary team now, so they need one to give a bowler’s perspective, which is great. We will wait and see how he does