James Anderson wants to prolong his Test career with England but David Gower believes the seamer "might just be lying to himself" on his future.

Anderson is the leading wicket-taker for seam bowlers in men's Test match history but struggled for large parts of the Ashes against Australia, who retained the urn with a 2-2 series draw.

The 41-year-old managed just five wickets across four Tests, one fewer than England's part-time off-spinner Joe Root, as Anderson struggled to trouble Australian batters.

Stuart Broad finished as England's leading wicket-taker after 22 dismissals and called time on his career, with Gower suggesting it may be time for Anderson to do the same.

"Jimmy wants to prolong his career literally as long as possible," former England captain Gower told Stats Perform. "He is so adamant that thoughts on retirement are not in his mind.

"I don't know Jimmy personally that well, but I suspect that's just because he loves being part of a team.

"Nowadays, you manage workloads, and that management has allowed Jimmy Anderson to still be playing international cricket at the age of 41. He loves it so much he doesn't want to give it away.

"The slight issue could be that people will look at his figures in this series. He's beaten the bat, yes, not as often as normal. He's had catches dropped off his bowling, which always infuriates and also makes the figures look worse, of course, but there's been just a little tiny downturn in the way he's bowled.

"At some stage, you have to say right we need to look ahead to the next generation. [Josh] Tongue, for instance, came in and looked pretty good. He's sharper than Anderson.

"Will Jimmy Anderson want to go to India where there's every likelihood that five pitches might be turning pitches? They're not going to be Jimmy Anderson pitches, I would suspect.

"If he wants to go to India, fair play to him. But selectors might at this stage be thinking now is the time that we have to have a quiet word in his ear.

"You maybe miss India, ostensibly, you could still keep the door open. He might be worried that they might tap him on the shoulder.

"He may say to the rest of the world: 'No, no, no, I'm absolutely fine, still got years left in me' – but he might just be lying to himself."

England captain Ben Stokes has repeatedly reiterated his desire to keep Anderson within the Test setup, with the former and coach Brendon McCullum placing their full backing in the seam bowler.

Regardless of whether Anderson – who has 690 wickets in red-ball internationals – continues, Gower believes the England veteran's legacy will remain intact.

"For Anderson, if this is the end for him, and it's still a very big if, you still look back on 20 years with extraordinary figures," Gower added.

"Even just look back to the winter, his figures in the winter, on very, very good batting pitches. In Pakistan, he played a full part in what was a great team effort winning a series, 3-0 in Pakistan, which in my time, that didn't happen.

"You had dead games on good pitches, maybe two-and-a-half innings in the entire game that was it, dull draws. England made those wins happen.

"They had to take wickets at key times and Jimmy was part of that. So you look back over 20 years and say it's an extraordinary, almost unbelievable record that sticks to his name."

Ben Stokes' development to become an "extraordinary leader" for England's Test side was not something David Gower could have foreseen previously.

Brendon McCullum and Stokes have formed a fearsome duo as England's captain and coach combination of their red-ball side, winning 13 of 18 Tests since joining together.

A stark upturn in fortunes for England's previously flailing side in the longest format of cricket has been led by Stokes and McCullum's insistence to play a free-flowing, attacking style against the red ball.

A 2-2 series draw in the most recent Ashes series further served to grow Stokes' stature as a captain, and former England skipper Gower acknowledged he could not have predicted this development before.

"I think Ben Stokes has proven himself to be an extraordinary leader of a cricket team and men," Gower told Stats Perform. 

"There is a lot about him that knowing him six or seven years ago, I just wouldn't have believed possible. But life has taught him all sorts of lessons.

"First of all, he has a great instinct for the game and a great instinct for pushing a game ahead to win. He loves winning and doesn't like losing, so will hurt for the ones they've lost, but hates drawing even more.

"That's an extraordinary attitude to have, because so many new captains, including his predecessor, Joe Root, would have taken a very different attitude to the possibility of a draw.

"He's created this culture along with McCullum, but he's got the instinct for the game."

Australia retained the Ashes after a 2-2 away series draw, having won the previous edition Down Under, after racing into a 2-0 lead in England with victories at Edgbaston and Lord's.

A first-innings declaration in the first Test at Edgbaston by Stokes, with Root on an unbeaten century and set to punish the toiling Australian bowlers, caused some questions.

Yet Gower refused to criticise Stokes for his decision to again try and push the red-ball outing towards a result.

He added: "The declaration at Edgbaston was derided by some and there's a fair case to argue there but was an interesting one, because [Stuart] Broad against [David] Warner was a tasty morsel at the start of an Ashes series.

"It could have laid down on marker but it didn't, but there you go, it's worth a go. But he has empathy for his players, he seems to understand his players.

"Good captains need to be on duty all the time. You've got decisions to make all the time. There will be mistakes, and there'll be ones you might revise with time to think about it, but you've got to go with your gut.

"Got to go with your instinct, and you've got to take people with you. And that is clearly evident with Stokes and McCullum, but Stokes as captain has taken that team with him all the way through."

While Stokes has largely been heralded for his influence as captain, Australian counterpart Pat Cummins came under scrutiny for a somewhat defensive plan to stem the flow of England's attacking output.

"You've got two very different teams, the makeup of the two teams is very, very different," Gower continued. "So Cummins' options were different.

"Cummins has one of the best attacks in the world at his disposal, and he is the leader of that attack. He also had a very good man, dare I say, in Steve Smith as his vice-captain.

"You need someone else besides you, who can advise and point things out and be in your ear to help you along.

"Both [captains] at various stages lead from the front. Stokes' 150 at Lord's was just awesome to watch. Cummins, at Birmingham with the bat, those crucial runs at the end. 

"He saw it through, lead from the front himself."

Gower also suggested the different options at the captain's disposal somewhat dictated their respective plans.

"The difference is England have six or seven batsmen who can force the pace," he said. "So they were always going to play that way, trust their instincts and accept the mistakes that come along with taking risks.

"Australia are always going to have to play at a different pace to England. That's why the 2-2 result at the end proves that there are various ways to skin a cat, and you can win games by being good at what you do. 

"Cummins and Stokes had different options. That's why in the end, I think it's so fascinating to see it all finish up with the series all square."

West Indies survived a middle-order collapse to eke out a two-wicket win with seven balls to spare over India and take a 2-0 lead in their five-match T20I series at Guyana’s National Stadium on Sunday.

After restricting India to 152-7 from their 20 overs, the West Indies scored 155-8 from 18.5 overs.

India won the toss and chose to take first strike but lost wickets early as Alzarri Joseph dismissed Shubman Gill for seven and Kyle Myers ran out Shuryakumar Yadav for one to have the tourists at 18-2 in the fourth over.

Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma added 42 for the third wicket before Kishan was bowled by Romario Shepherd for 27. Sanju Samson was next to go, dismissed by Akeal Hosein for seven. India were then 76-4.

Varma and Karthik Pandya built a 42-run partnership that was broken at 42 when Hosein picked up his second wicket when he had Varma caught by Obed McCoy for 51. Pandya carried on before he was bowled by Joseph for 24.

Axar Patel made 14 that helped India approach 150. However, any chance of India making much more ended when he was bowled by Shepherd. Ravi Bishnoi raced to eight from four and Arshdeep Singh, six from three as India’s innings closed at 152-7.

Shepherd and Joseph had identical figures of 2-28 while Akeal Hosein took 2-29.

Needing to score at just over 7.5 runs an over, the West Indies were in dire straits losing two wickets in the opening over.

Brandon King was dismissed by Panda first ball. Three balls later, Pandya removed Johnson Charles for two to leave the West Indies 2-3. Kyle Mayers was trapped lbw by Singh for 15 and the West Indies were looking at a collapse at 32-3 in the fourth over.

Nicholas Pooran and Rovman Powell fought back against the Indian attack partnering for 57 from 37 balls when Powell was caught at deep third man for 21 to give Pandya his third wicket of the match. Pooran continued to plunder the bowling while Shimron Hetmyer, who has replaced Powell, got his eye in.

Together, they took the West Indies to within 27 runs of their target. However, as is often the case with the West Indies, the game was turned on its head when Pooran was dismissed by Mukesh Kumar, caught at cover-point for 67 that included six fours and four sixes.

His dismissal triggered a collapse in which the West Indies lost four wickets for three runs in 13 balls. It was Yuzvendra’s Chahal’s third over, the 16^th of the innings where things went pear-shaped for the West Indies.  Shepherd was run out for nought off the first ball, he then had Holder stumped off his fourth and Hetmyer trapped lbw for 22 on the final ball.

It was left to Akeal Hosein, who ended unbeaten on 16 and Alzarri Joseph at the other end on 10, to see the West Indies to a nail-biting victory.

Pandya took 3-37 and Chahal 2-19 were the main bowlers for India.

Hard-hitting Guyanese left-hander, Sherfane Rutherford, played a starring role to lead the Montreal Tigers to a one-wicket win over Vancouver Knights in Qualifier 2 of the Global T20 Canada at the CAA Canter in Brampton on Saturday.

After winning the toss and electing to field first, the Tigers restricted the Knights to 137-6 off their 20 overs.

Pakistani opener Mohammad Rizwan led the way for the Knights with 39 off 33 balls while South African Corbin Bosch hit a 28-ball 36 including one four and three sixes.

Abbas Afridi was the main destroyer for the Tigers with 5-29 from his four overs.

Montreal’s chase did not get off to a good start at all as they lost their first four wickets for just 29 runs within the first five overs. A 43-run fifth wicket stand between Rutherford and Dipendra Singh Airee provided some stability before the latter fell in the 13^th over.

Another hard-hitting West Indian, Andre Russell, joined Rutherford at the crease and the pair added just 18 before Russell fell in the 15^th over for an 11-ball 17 including one four and two sixes.

Carlos Brathwaite then joined Rutherford at the crease but didn’t last long, facing only two balls and making one to leave the Tigers 97-7 in the middle of the 16^th over.

17-year-old Aayan Afzal Khan then joined Rutherford and the two formed what eventually became a match-winning 26-run eighth wicket partnership before Khan was the first of consecutive wickets in the 19^th over bowled by Junaid Siddique leaving the Tigers needing 15 off the last over with Rutherford on strike facing Rayyan Pathan’s medium pace.

The pressure did not phase Rutherford at all as he deposited the first three balls of the over into the crowd to book the Tigers spot in the final set for Sunday against the Surrey Jaguars at the same venue.

Rutherford finished 48* off 34 balls including two fours and three sixes.

Siddique took 4-22 from his four overs for the Knights. Fabian Allen gave the Knights a good start with 2-15 from his two overs.

West Indies Captain Hayley Matthews played a starring role to help the Welsh Fire defeat the Southern Brave by four runs in their Women’s Hundred fixture at the Rose Bowl in Southampton on Friday.

Matthews hit a 38-ball 65 including 13 fours to help the Fire post 165-3 from their 100 balls after being inserted by the Brave.

The Fire also got solid contributions from Georgia Elwiss (28) and Captain Tammy Beaumont (26).

Then, despite an opening partnership of 96 between Smriti Mandhana and Danni Wyatt, the Southern Brave were restricted to 161-4 off their 100 balls.

Mandhana ended up 70* off 42 balls while Wyatt made 67 off 37 balls. Mandhana hit 11 fours while Wyatt hit 10 fours and two sixes.

Alex Griffiths took 2-26 from her 20 balls while Matthews took 1-35 from her 20 deliveries for the Fire.

Matthew Wade says the draw for players to take part in The Hundred remains strong despite growing competition from new franchises.

The Australia international, who produced a stunning piece of fielding to deny a boundary as London Spirit lost to Oval Invincibles on Thursday, believes the advent of new competitions such as Major League Cricket in the United States can benefit the game at large as well as players and fans.

There have been several high-profile pull-outs across the men’s and women’s tournaments this year, with both Ashes series having recently completed and the men’s World Cup only two months away.

Rashid Khan will no longer be a part of Trent Rockets’ campaign and Heinrich Klaasen will withdraw from the Invincibles at the end of the group stage, whilst Ollie Pope, Olly Stone and Fred Klaassen – representing Welsh Fire, London Spirit and Manchester Originals respectively – have pulled out of the competition completely.

In the women’s tournament, Alyssa Healy and Ellyse Perry have withdrawn from Northern Superchargers and Birmingham Phoenix respectively after playing for Australia during this summer’s Ashes.

Yet Wade, who is playing in The Hundred for the second time after featuring for Phoenix in 2022, says he sees no threat to the competition from the growth of new franchises.

“From internationals’ point of view, every player I speak to wants to get over and play in The Hundred,” the 35-year-old told the PA news agency.

“It’s unfortunate that a couple of guys got pulled out due to workloads. We’re coming into a lot of cricket so that’s more about international cricket and a World Cup coming up, so boards are being a bit more protective of their players.

“I don’t think it’s a reflection on the tournament at all. Every player I speak to is jumping at the chance to come and play in it.”

The inaugural instalment of Major League Cricket culminated on Sunday with victory for MI New York, and with just six teams competing offers players a lighter playing schedule which can have a knock-on benefit over the rest of the summer.

“I wouldn’t say Major League Cricket has changed the landscape,” said Wade. “The new tournament gives greater opportunity for overseas players and I was lucky enough to play in America this year and it’s terrific to see cricket played over there.

“It’s been talked about for a long time. The facilities were a lot better than I’d expected and it’s nice to see it after a lot of talk. But I wouldn’t say it’s changed the landscape.

“There’s been a lot of tournaments over the last few years that have started up, so the franchise game over the last four or five years has certainly changed.

“Most of them run back to back, one tournament finishes and another starts. There’s plenty of international players that are going in drafts and not getting picked up.

“There’s a lot of players that don’t get opportunities to play in The Hundred that are now able to go and play in Sri Lanka or in America.

“I don’t think there’s competition, I think it’s a good thing that we have cricket pretty much 12 months of the year, whether you want to watch tournament cricket or franchise cricket. It’s a good thing for the game.”

India and West Indies have been fined for maintaining a slow over-rate in the first T20 International in Trinidad and Tobago on August 3.

India was fined five per cent of their match fee for falling one over short of the minimum over rate, while West Indies have been fined 10 per cent of their match fee for falling two overs short of the minimum over rate.

Richie Richardson of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees imposed the sanction after Hardik Pandya and Rovman Powell’s sides were ruled to be one and two overs short respectively of the target after time allowances were taken into consideration.

In accordance with Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to minimum over-rate offences, players are fined five per cent of their match fees for every over their side fails to bowl in the allotted time, subject to a cap of 50 per cent of the match fee.

Pandya and Powell pleaded guilty to the offences and accepted the proposed sanctions, so there was no need for a formal hearing.

On-field umpires Gregory Brathwaite and Patrick Gustard, third umpire Nigel Duguid and fourth umpire Leslie Reifer leveled the charges.

The West Indies secured a narrow four-run win over India at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Thursday to go 1-0 up in their five-match T20I series.

The hosts posted a subpar 149-6 from their 20 overs after winning the toss and batting first.

Captain Rovman Powell hit a 32-ball 48 to lead the West Indies while Nicholas Pooran, fresh off a brilliant 137* to lead MI New York to the Major League cricket title on Sunday, continued his good form with 41 off 34 balls.

Powell hit three fours and as many sixes while Pooran hit two fours and two maximums.

Brandon King had earlier hit 28 as Yuzvendra Chahal and Arshdeep Singh each took two wickets.

India’s chase didn’t start well losing openers Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan in the first powerplay with just 28 runs on the board.

A 39-run third wicket partnership between Suryakumar Yadav and debutant Tilak Varma provided some stability for the Indians before they fell in quick succession leaving India 77-4 after 11 overs.

Varma made a top score of 39 while Yadav made 21.

Hardik Pandya (19), Sanju Samson (12) and Axar Patel (13) were next to go.

India eventually found themselves 140-8 needing 10 to win off the last over with Kuldeep Yadav and Arshdeep Singh at the crease facing Romario Shepherd.

The first ball of the last over saw Shepherd bowl a brilliant Yorker to dismiss Yadav. India lost a second wicket in the over when Singh was run out by Shimron Hetmyer for 11 leaving India needing six runs of the last ball with one wicket in hand.

In the end, Shepherd’s last ball was hit for just a single by Mukesh Kumar meaning India ended up 145-9, securing the win and a 1-0 series lead for the hosts.

Jason Holder was excellent with the ball with 2-19 from his four overs while Shepherd and Obed McCoy also took a pair of wickets, each.

The second T20I will take place on Sunday at the Providence Stadium in Guyana.

President Dr. Kishore Shallow says he remains unwavering in his commitment to delivering a new era of governance reform within Cricket West Indies (CWI).

After a series of ongoing consultations with key stakeholders since being elected in March, President Shallow notes that the indispensable role of governance is a key element in reinvigorating CWI.

“We have produced several reports on governance over the years and the regional dialogue on this matter has also been unending. The way forward is for all stakeholders to recognize that the reform effort is fundamental to the transformation and advancement of West Indies Cricket,” Dr Shallow said.

 “I am resolute, that if we are to achieve the desired outcomes and realize sustainable growth in West Indies Cricket, we must act with a measure of insistence and have a sense of priority towards the reform exercise.”

Last week during the 22nd Frank Worrell Memorial Lecture, Prime Minister of Barbados, Honourable Mia Mottley, echoed similar statements.

“You cannot have the benefit of all of these reports, from all different types of society, all different parts of the region, and then we say no, ignore it. The first issue we need to get right is governance,” the Barbadian Prime Minister said then.

 “The longer we take to do it, the worse the results will be.”

The CWI President said full consideration will be given to these reports, including but not limited to the 1992 Governance Report, Patterson Report 2007, Wilkins Report 2012, Barriteau Report 2015, and Wehby Report 2020.

Dr. Shallow led constitutional reforms during his presidency at Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Cricket Association and Windward Islands Cricket Board, including introducing term limits for presidents.

In the coming weeks, Cricket West Indies will meet with the CARICOM Sub-Committee on Cricket chaired by the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Dr. the Hon. Keith Rowley. Governance reform is expected to be an agenda item.

England batting great David Gower described Stuart Broad's Ashes send-off as "the stuff of legend" after he delivered two crucial wickets to level the series on the final outing of his career.

Broad announced the fifth Test against Australia would be his last match as a professional cricketer on Saturday, before ending his glittering career on a high two days later.

With England requiring two late wickets on day five to level the series at 2-2, Broad dismissed Todd Murphy and Alex Carey to deny Australia a first series win on English soil since 2001.

The 37-year-old ends his career with 604 Test wickets, a tally only bettered by long-time team-mate James Anderson (690) among England players.

Asked about Broad's remarkable final outing, former England skipper Gower told Stats Perform: "Stuart's finished as anyone would like to, on a high, on an absolute high. 

"The Ashes has probably been his specialist subject, but he's taken wickets all around the world. His record, of course, is absolutely outstanding, bettered only by Jimmy Anderson. 

"His last shot being a six over deep midwicket, then to finish with the two wickets that wrapped up the game at The Oval… that is the stuff of legend. 

"Most of us go out without that script, most of us have to slink off having had a pretty bad day! 

"To go [out] on a highlight… that is a privilege accorded to very, very few. Alastair Cook did it at The Oval, others have done it at The Oval. The gods are looking after you when you have that sort of finish.

"I think for so many players, whatever else happens elsewhere in the world, if you are good at The Ashes – because of the history that comes with it – that stays in your memory forever. 

"I was very lucky to have a pretty good record in The Ashes as a batsman, and that's something I'm very proud of. Stuart can be equally proud about the way he succeeded and the way he played.

"We will always miss great players. When England next take to the field in a test match in India or next summer back here against different opposition, [we'll] be looking at the England eleven and thinking, 'I wish we still had Stuart' because people really enjoyed the way he played the game."

Broad's total of 153 wickets in Ashes series is the best of any England bowler, with only Australia pair Shane Warne (195) and Glenn McGrath (157) boasting more dismissals. 

Meanwhile, fellow bowling great Anderson has refuted suggestions he could follow Broad into retirement, saying his team-mate's exit has made his own desire to play on "even more firm".

Reflecting on the duo's incredible Test records, Gower added: "What will stay indelibly in black ink is that record. 

"The records of the game will show him [Broad] with 600-odd wickets in a lot of Test matches, 600 wickets for a seam bowler of his ilk is a lot of wickets. 

"Jimmy Anderson is ahead in that game, and he is even more incredible for his longevity. Jimmy is saying, 'I don't want to give up, I'm only 41!'

"It's an extraordinary thing for him to be quite so fit and strong and capable at that age as a quick bowler. 

"Both of them will look back as their lives develop, and there will always be those figures in the book."

An all-round performance from Sunil Narine propelled the Oval Invincibles to a three-wicket win over the London Spirit in their Hundred fixture at Lord’s on Wednesday.

First, Narine starred with the ball after his Invincibles won the toss and elected to field first.

In his 20 balls, Narine took 2-14 to help restrict the Spirit to 131 from their 100 balls.

Adam Rossington led the way for the Spirit with 39 while Matthew Wade hit 37.

The Invincibles then reached 132-7 with only one ball to spare. Sam Curran hit 34 while Captain Sam Billings made 25.

Narine hit 13 from five balls including the winning runs. Daniel Worrall, Jordan Thompson and Nathan Ellis all took two wickets, each, for the Spirit.

England cannot claim a "moral victory" over Australia in this year's "outstanding" Ashes series, which ranks among the best ever played in the view of former skipper David Gower.

Rain during the fourth Test at Old Trafford ruined England's hopes of teeing up a decider at The Oval, though Stuart Broad's heroics did at least allow them to level the series at 2-2 with victory in the fifth Test.

While England's wait to recapture the urn continues, supporters and players took solace in denying Australia a first series win on English soil since 2001.

Captain Ben Stokes said he was "proud" of England's performances after the fifth Test, describing the draw as a "fair reflection" of the series as a whole.

While Gower agrees with that assessment, he does not believe England will be alone in wondering what might have been.

"Let's not talk about moral victories, that's just a red herring," he told Stats Perform. "It's 2-2, that's how it'll stand in history forever. 

"I think it's a fair reflection. If you talk to people in Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart, Perth and all the rest of Australia, they will say Australia could have won it. 

"It's a certainty that if you talk to people in the United Kingdom, they will look at all the things that could have been slightly different.

"They'll look at the weather in Manchester and say we had the moral victory."

Gower added: "I guess what's fair to say is that England were destroying one of the best bowling attacks in world cricket at Old Trafford.

"That assault at Manchester was awesome. If you want to talk about moral victories, maybe that's the one place you're allowed the leniency to say that."

Gower believes the series' many twists and turns should ensure it is remembered as one of the most entertaining of the modern era.

"This is right up there with the great series, or at least the ones in living memory – I can't go back to beyond the 1930s," he added.

"I was part of the 1981 series, which was [Ian] Botham's Ashes, Botham and [Bob] Willis's Ashes in many ways. That was a brilliant, brilliant series to be part of.

"Then 2005 was outstanding, we had some fantastic performances there. Great drama, great theatre, and this year was certainly up there for drama and theatre. You can argue about the overall quality, but there were some stunning performances. 

"You look at the human error… at the end of it all, you can imagine that the results – English fans would say – could have been very different. If only. 

"But the Aussies will say the same. Rain at Manchester, who'd have thought it? Weather in England… you have to factor these things in at some stage. 

"At the end of it, I would say that the quality of the cricket between the two teams was outstanding."

Gower feels much of the series' intrigue came from a clash of styles, with England's aggressive approach under Brendon McCullum contrasting sharply with Australia's more conservative way of playing.

"Before the series started, there was an element of it being a clash of cultures," he said. "The so-called 'Bazball' against the more traditional way that Australia play. 

"Sides have to play the way their players play best. England have a lot of gifted batsmen who have the capacity to force the pace, as per 'Bazball'. 

"Australia have batsman, for instance like Usman Khawaja, who will just stay at the crease and make runs in quantities and buy time, use time. He was outstanding as well throughout the series."

Stuart Broad has revealed the wicket of Todd Murphy on the final day of the Ashes series was going to be his last ball in international cricket.

The 37-year-old announced his retirement at the end of day three of his 167th Test.

England needed two wickets to win in the closing stages at the Oval and ultimately draw the series as Australia continued to knock off the 383 runs needed in order to claim their first series victory on these shores since 2001.

Broad says he had been told by captain Ben Stokes that he would be replaced by Mark Wood before his delivery to Murphy, but got the fairytale ending to his professional career by having Murphy caught behind before claiming his final victim, Alex Carey, a couple of overs later.

He told Sky Sports: “Actually Stokesy said to me before the Todd Murphy wicket that this will be my last over because we need to get Woody on with the extra pace.

“That (wicket) was the last ball of the over and I was running in knowing that was my last ball of professional cricket and my legs went a bit jelly like as I was running in.

“I just said to myself ‘just hit the pitch as hard as you can’ and he nicked it and that’s why I was like ‘oh my god he’s nicked it’.

“I managed to get another over so it felt really special to finish on a win and be in the changing room with all the guys I’ve played so much cricket with.”

Broad, England’s second-highest Test wicket-taker of all time, did not tell his team-mates until the morning of the day he went public with the news, admitting he was still “emotionally tired” on the decision.

He continued: “I was so focused on the Ashes series and the games were coming so thick and fast, I didn’t really have time to think of anything else and had to be fully dedicated to the task at hand.

“Probably towards the end of Old Trafford I started to think, the start of the last Test is next week, I’m thinking where should I go and just could not think clearly enough.

“I was emotionally tired on what was already a busy summer so far but I facetimed Mollie (Broad’s fiancee) on the Friday night and she said ‘you’ve just got to follow your heart and say what you think and I’ll support you either way’.

“I put the Facetime down and went to Stokesy’s room, shook his hand and just told him straight away ‘that’s me. It’s been an absolute pleasure to play with you as a team-mate and a friend, and you’ve been a dream captain so thank you’ and once I made that decision, I felt at peace with it straight away.”

The seamer developed a new tactic to switch the bails on top of the stumps in an attempt to disrupt the batter.

On both occasions a wicket fell – Marnus Labuschagne nicked Mark Wood straight into the hands of Joe Root in the first innings before Murphy edged behind to set England on their way to victory.

He said: “It was really special and really loud on Monday, the atmosphere was awesome out there and the little bail flick and getting a couple of wickets.

“I just made it up and I wish I made it about 10 years ago as I might have found a few more wickets!”

England have been docked a sizeable chunk of points in the World Test Championship from what they earned in the Ashes after consistently falling foul of the over-rate regulations.

While the standard of play in a series that ebbed and flowed was widely praised, there were repeated instances of both England and Australia failing to reach the statutory 90 overs in a day threshold.

Ben Stokes’ side were found to be two overs short in the first Test at Edgbaston, nine in the second at Lord’s, three in the fourth at Emirates Old Trafford and five in the final Test at the Kia Oval.

Having gained 28 points – 24 for two wins and four for a draw – in a series that finished 2-2, with Australia retaining the urn as holders, England have lost 19 for infringements in four of five Tests.

That leaves England with just nine points in the third edition of the WTC, dropping them below the West Indies, who have played just two matches and are yet to record a win.

The International Cricket Council last month implemented an overhaul of the sanctions for sluggish over-rates, which was retrospectively applied for the start of the WTC cycle.

Players are fined five per cent of their match fee, up to 50 per cent, and teams lose one point for every over short – although this is not applied if a team is bowled out before the 80th over.

England’s players were penalised 10 per cent of their match fees for the first Test, 45 for the second, 15 for the fourth and 25 for the fifth.

Australia, meanwhile, had 10 points deducted from their tally and players fined 50 per cent of their match fees for the fourth Test after being found to have been 10 overs short at Old Trafford.

Michael Hussey believes ‘Bazball’ is “awesome” for Test cricket and says Australia were always concerned by England’s Ashes plan.

England fought back to square a thrilling series 2-2 after finding themselves 2-0 down against the world Test champions.

It would surely have been better had rain not halted England in the fourth Test at Old Trafford – the outcome vindicating the bold ‘Bazball’ policy that has attracted new fans into the longer format of the game.

“I think it has been awesome for the game,” said former Australia batter Hussey, known throughout the sport as ‘Mr Cricket’ because of his obsession for it.

“It’s created so much interest in Test cricket. You’re going to get that with an Ashes series anyway, but it’s created even more hype around it.

“It’s exciting to watch and that can only be good for the game.

“I was intrigued to see if England would have the courage to play that way because it’s not easy to smack high-quality bowlers out of the park on pitches doing a bit. But they did.”

Hussey scored 6,235 runs in 79 Test matches between 2005 and 2013 and played in three Ashes series.

The 48-year-old watched the start of the 2023 Ashes edition at home in Australia before heading to the UK to coach the Welsh Fire men’s team at The Hundred.

Hussey said: “Observing the Australian team, I think they were concerned about ‘Bazball’. The effect it was going to have and the extra pressure it was going to put on the bowling unit.

“But the Australians stuck to their guns and the way they wanted to play. Pat Cummins copped a bit of stick for his captaincy, but I thought he did well.

“Australia backed their way of playing and said: ‘If England want to play that way it’s fine, we can plan for that. We’re not going to change the way we play our best cricket’.

“They did that and Australians are absolutely delighted that we’ve retained the Ashes.”

Hussey had a clear insight into the England set-up when he was appointed as a batting consultant for the successful T20 World Cup campaign last year.

He insisted England’s approach to Test cricket would continue to develop under coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes and that it could be a far different Australia side they face in the 2025-26 Ashes Down Under.

Hussey said: “Knowing Brendon and also spending time with Ben at CSK (Chennai Super Kings) in the IPL (Indian Premier League), they are very invested in this way of playing, not just to win games but to bring Test cricket as an enjoyable product for everyone to watch.

“The Australian team over the next few years is also going to be fascinating to watch.

“David Warner and Usman Khawaja are coming to the back end of their career and who knows how long Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood will keep playing for?

“Nathan Lyon’s also injured at the moment and we are going to start getting a glimpse of what the next era for us looks like.”