Ed Smith was a boss who didn’t rate me, claims Stuart Broad

Last month the ECB relieved national chief selector Ed Smith of his duties, and it marked the end of a successful era, one that saw England win the World Cup and get back to being elite in Test cricket. Smith’s tenure also oversaw the emergence of youngsters such as Sibley, Crawley, Archer and Pope, but one man who did not have the smoothest of times with Smith at the helm was Stuart Broad. 

"You can say [Smith's period as National Selector] was a success in the sense that the team won games and a World Cup. And he brought some fine players through. But from my point of view we struggled a bit on the communication side and probably saw the game of cricket slightly differently. A lot of people have bosses who don't rate them as much as other people and I think he was mine. He probably didn't rate me as much as other players. That's fine but I kept trying to prove some selection decisions wrong,” Broad said in an interview, reported ESPN Cricinfo.

"I am very open to being told things. You have a discussion face to face and then have a beer and move on. That's how I like to do things. Maybe Ed and I didn't have that sort of relationship. But he did a lot for bringing through some young cricketers and giving them exposure to the international scene. But he didn't rate me overly highly and I just had to keep proving that view wrong."

Broad reasserted that getting dropped for the first Test of the summer last year ‘upset’ him. The veteran admitted that, at 34, it might not be realistic for him to feature in every match, but insisted that after impressing in both the Ashes and the South Africa tour, he felt disrespected when it was announced that he would be warming the bench.

"Is it realistic I'm going to play every Test? No. But if the communication is done well then you understand the reasons for it. You understand why you might miss certain games to be fit for other games. That along with building experience into different players.”

Broad said that it is ‘fine’ if he is rested in order to inject experience into other younger bowlers, but insisted that all he is expecting is good communication. The 34-year-old, who is currently representing Nottinghamshire in the County Championship, also asserted that he gave up white-ball cricket only so that he can have a prolonged Test career and give it his all in every game he plays.

"I pride myself on being available and ready. I'm bowling well, taking wickets for Notts and helping win games. I don't think many could argue against Jimmy and I being in the best bowling attack in England, but if you need to get experience and overs into bowlers that is what it is.

"It's when the communication disappears; that's when players can't see reasons or see through it."