Broad calls for England to trial extra seamer after India loss
England's 50-over World Cup preparations face fresh scrutiny after a six-wicket defeat to India prompted Stuart Broad to call for an urgent change in bowling strategy.
India secured a comprehensive six-wicket victory over England at Edgbaston, exposing the gulf between the two sides in the 50-over format. The defeat marks England's sixth consecutive ODI loss to India, leaving Harry Brook's side languishing in eighth place in the world rankings. It also extended a bleak run that has seen England lose 14 of their last 20 matches.
The result stands in stark contrast to England's recent T20 form, where they recently leapfrogged India to claim the world number one spot after winning the preceding series 4-0. In the ODI, a top-order collapse left England at 80-5 before Joe Root's unbeaten 76 and Liam Dawson's maiden half-century guided them to 259. Shubman Gill's 75-ball 80 then secured the chase for the tourists despite the early losses of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
The heavy workload on England's pace attack has become a central concern. Jofra Archer and Josh Tongue, the only recognised quicks in the side, bowled 13 of the first 16 overs. Former bowler Stuart Broad warned that this lack of depth is unsustainable. "England are eighth in the world rankings and are playing like they are eighth," Broad told Sky Sports Cricket. "They need to get more experience into the roles of the players."
Broad argued that England must immediately trial an additional fast bowler to ease the burden on Archer ahead of next year's World Cup. He pointed to the tournament's location in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia as a reason to prioritise pace. "It's going to be the faster, taller bowlers who do the damage there," Broad said. He suggested dropping one of the side's spinners in favour of giving a seamer match exposure.
Identifying the need for a bowler to target outside edges in the middle overs, Broad ruled out using Sam Curran as a first-change option. He named Brydon Carse, Gus Atkinson and Saqib Mahmood as candidates who should be tested. "England need someone to come through in the middle overs, bowl bouncers and seamers, and take the outside edge, so they don't have to go to Archer all the time," Broad said.
