England Cricket / Frank Gregan / 04 January 2010 / 1

Stuart isn't the only Broad in international cricket. His father is an ICC match referee and there have recently been allegations that Broad Jr has escaped punishment for petulant behaviour as a result of the connection. Frank Gregan investigates....

Anybody who has witnessed a close up of a Stuart Broad delivery as a no ball is being re-played will tell you that he has very big feet! They need to be as he is following in the footsteps of his father, former England opener Chris Broad. Dad is a match referee these days and there has been conjecture in the last couple of weeks that his son is receiving preferential treatment as a consequence of his father's office.

It's a serious accusation, one of those that encourages whispers, nods and winks but not normally aired in the public domain. All that changed last week when legendary Indian opening-batsman- now-turned-columnist Sunil Gavaskar decided to poke a stick in the hornet's nest and record his beliefs in print. Gavaskar is of the opinion that young Stuart is being treated leniently by umpires and match referees because his father is one of them.

It's an accusation that Stuart Broad has refuted but there is little doubt that he does share his Dad's petulant streak. Broad senior's appointment as a match referee in 2003 was a classic case of the poacher turning gamekeeper. Those who witnessed the self-demolition of his stumps after he was bowled in the Bicentennial Ashes test in Sydney in 1988 will testify to his undisciplined and churlish behaviour.

It was not a stand alone incident. The previous year in Lahore against Pakistan he had stood his ground after having been given out caught behind. That tour to Pakistan was one of the most acrimonious ever in the history of the game, right up there with Bodyline, and Broad sr certainly contributed to the ill feeling.

Stuart Broad does seem to have inherited his father's will to win. He is a fierce competitor and like most pace bowlers, is not short of a word or two when decisions don't go his way or the batsman bangs the ball back over his head. It's not ideal but it happens, 'you pays your money and you takes your chance' and as long as he is treated in the same manner as every other bowler who airs his displeasure then there isn't a problem. If he is receiving preferential treatment then it becomes an issue.

For his part, Broad Jnr. seems unfazed by the allegation. When asked for a response to Gavaskar's claims that he had received special treatment during the first test he said, "I certainly get treated like everyone else, the fact is I've done nothing to the grade where I should be getting fined or banned. That is the key!"

The English bowlers will have their work cut out when they next take the field with the ball in the third test in Cape Town. It was the second innings demolition of the Proteas by Broad and Graeme Swann which set up the victory in the second test and they would love to be able to repeat that feat. Currently in this series, Swann is the leading English wicket taker with sixteen to his name, James Anderson has thirteen and Broad trails in third with ten.

Swann has been traded as high as [5.5] in the top English series wicket market and is currently available to back at [1.5], having been matched as low as [1.3]. A match should be attainable in the region of [5.5] on Anderson and should you fancy Stuart Broad to fire during the last three innings of the series then [8.0] will be the likely odds.

It's an important time for Stuart Broad, he is now 23 years old and established as a regular in the England team. He's shown streaks of petulance that have probably had more to do with immaturity than genetics. There is one thing he can do to ensure that he is not accused of receiving preferential treatment - behave! He has big feet, let's hope they don't get too big for his boots!

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1. dasu | 22 June 2011

   i like you
   

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