Thaindian News

London, July 19 (IANS) England coach Andy Flower hates to call fast bowler Stuart Broad an enforcer. Flower wants Broad to create pressure and take wickets in the four-match Test series against India starting Thursday at Lord’s.

Flower insists that Broad didn’t bowl badly in the Test series against Sri Lanka.

“I didn’t think he bowled as badly as his figures suggested against Sri Lanka. I’ve got a lot of respect for Broad as a young cricketer,” Flower was quoted as saying by The Daily Telegraph.

“He’s got pace and bounce and he’s a great competitor - but he can be more accurate. I’ve heard some crazy stuff about him being - and I hate this word - an ‘enforcer’.

“His job is to create pressure and to take wickets and to do that you generally bowl at off stump. So his job is not to rough up the opposition. It is not to be this ridiculous ‘enforcer’.

“He’s passionate about playing for England but he has a responsibility to behave in the right way. He is perfectly well aware of it because he’s smart. He must embrace that responsibility and act accordingly.”

After an unimpressive series against Sri Lanka, Broad went back to play county cricket and regained form by picking six wickets for Nottinghamshire against Somerset. It was also the first time Broad bowled 50 overs in his career.

“We always select our best XI and Stuart has been a big part of that for the last few years. That’s the criteria we’ll use when picking the side for Lords. He’s in the squad but we’ve yet to make a decision about the best XI,” Flower said.