Ashes diary: Stuart Broad receives England momentos for 150th cap - and asks referee dad for over-rate tips

On the occasion of Stuart Broad’s 150th Test cap, there were some nice touches from the England camp. Before the team came out to warm up, there was a presentation in the dressing room.

There was a video featuring messages from family members, former and current players, plus a few gifts, including a vintage bottle of red, a signed Nottingham Forest shirt, and a pencil drawing of his eight for 15 against Australia in 2015.

The illustrator behind the artwork? England fielding coach Carl Hopkinson who, it emerges, is a very talented artist.

After all that effort, it’s good that England picked Broad over Jack Leach, eh?

Pain barrier

David Warner batted nicely for his 95, going through the gears until slapping Ben Stokes to point. He scored one more run than he did in Brisbane, and equalled his total from the 2019 Ashes.

This despite needing a painkilling injection on the morning of the game, and slugging back the pills during his innings. Warner said that during the week, he was in “agony”, and was unable to pick up his three daughters, who are with him in Adelaide.

Protears

After all the Australian whinging over the years about England’s reliance on South Africa as their National Cricket Academy. You know the score: Trott, Pietersen, and the rest.

In this match, Australia have Marnus Labuschagne and Michael Neser in their side. Both men are South African-born but moved to Queensland with their families when they were kids.

England, as it happen, have no South African-born players with them on this tour, with Stokes the only one born overseas (in New Zealand).

Reading the room

It’s generally pretty easy to tell what sort of day a team has had by who is sent for media duties.

While Australia wheeled out Warner, England sent Graham Thorpe, whose responsibility as assistant coach is for England’s batting. They spent the day in the field, of course.

Thorpe is a fine, optimistic man. He reeled off the usual stuff about England picking the right team, having the right plans, “sticking at it well” and still being in the game. But the very fact that it was him delivering these words, suggests they weren’t…

Calling Dad

England’s over-rate is in sharp focus after they were fined their entire match fee for their funereal pace of play on day two in Brisbane. Broad has tried to help them out - by asking his Dad, ICC Match Referee Chris, for a few tips.

While England only got through 25 overs in the first session, there was more obvious urgency and – with allowances for DRS etc – match ref David Boon informed them that they were up with the rate at lunch.

Including the extra half-hour at the end of the day, they were one over out, which at least keeps them in contention to get some payment out of this game…

Bell tolls

The South Australian Cricket Association unveiled a new bell in memory of Keith Bradshaw, their long-time Chief Executive who died after a battle with cancer last month. In a lovely touch, the first people to ring it were Bradshaw’s family.

Bradshaw will be replaced at the end of next month by an Englishman, Charlie Hodgson, an excellent administrator with Surrey.