Stuart Broad is in the running for the prestigious BBC Sports Personality of the Year award, after claiming his 500th Test wicket during an eye-catching series of displays in England’s Test series against West Indies and Pakistan this summer.
Broad, 34, was announced as a nominee on BBC Radio One Breakfast by the DJ and cricket fan, Greg James, and Joe “The Body” Wicks, and took to social media shortly afterwards to express his delight at “such a huge honour”.
In the course of England’s bio-secure summer, Broad reaffirmed his status as England’s attack leader, alongside his long-term new-ball partner James Anderson, with 29 wickets at 13.41, including a ten-wicket haul in the decisive third-Test victory over West Indies at Emirates Old Trafford.
However, he had started the summer out of favour despite an impressive showing in England’s winter series win in South Africa, and caused a stir midway through the first Test at the Ageas Bowl, when he took to Sky Sports to express his “frustration and anger” at being omitted from the line-up.
Such a huge honour to be nominated for BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2020. Thanks @gregjames & @thebodycoach for announcing. Right- back to the cricket nets!
Thank You! #SPOTY pic.twitter.com/VO7L5yIY1H— Stuart Broad (@StuartBroad8) December 1, 2020
But he soon backed up his words with deeds, marking his comeback with six vital wickets to help square the series in the second Test, then bettered that with his Player-of-the-Match display one game later – a match that also featured his 500th wicket, that of Kraigg Brathwaite on the final morning of the game, and a remarkable 33-ball fifty from No.10, the third-fastest by an England player.
By the end of the summer Broad was seventh on the all-time list of Test wicket-takers, with 514 at 27.65 in 143 Tests.
Although Broad is an outsider for the SPOTY crown, which was claimed by his team-mate Ben Stokes last December following his stellar displays in both England’s World Cup victory and the subsequent Ashes, it is the third year running that a cricketer has been nominated, following Anderson’s nomination in 2018.
The first sportsman to be announced for this year’s award was the Formula 1 racing driver, Lewis Hamilton, who claimed a record-equalling seventh world title earlier this year.