• Home
  • Who Said What
  • Just Praying That Stuart Broad Breaks Silence On His Viral Reaction Meme At Perth

"Just praying that...": Stuart Broad breaks silence on his viral reaction meme at Perth

Soumyajit Dutta

Stuart Broad's meme in the left and Broad himslef at right [Source: @Coral/X]Stuart Broad's meme in the left and Broad himslef at right [Source: @Coral/X]

Former England cricketer Stuart Broad has shared his thoughts on his viral reaction to England's collapse in the first Ashes Test at Perth. 

As Broad was on his commentary stint with Channel 7 alongside Alison Mitchell and Matthew Hayden, the cricketer closed his eyes in frustration after England went from 1/65 to all out for 164 within just 18 overs. 

Broad was clearly frustrated and that exact moment shared on Cricket 7's post on X saw more than 2.5 million views and 14,000 likes. 

Stuart Broad opens up after his reaction went viral

Speaking on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast after England's 8-wicket loss, Broad opined that it was a natural reaction to the horror that took place in front of his eyes.

“That’s what Test cricket does to you, doesn’t it? It sort of brings all your emotions out. It was that period on commentary where we lost four in the blink of an eye. When ‘Rooty’ [Joe Root] chopped on, it was just a natural reaction for me to just close my eyes and just pray it wasn’t actually happening," Broad said.

Broad shared that he wanted to get past that feeling and live in the delusion of it actually not happening if he closed his eyes. 

"If I close them, maybe this isn’t actually happening? I’ve been there loads of times before in Australia … where they just opened that door slightly. And you just see Jamie Smith walking out to bat, and think you’ve never been in a situation like this before, you’ve never felt what is going on. Credit to Australia, they were absolutely superb – but England just opened that door,” Broad added.

Further speaking in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Broad added that his reaction was genuine and parallels the reaction of a heartfelt England cricket fan who must have had the same reaction at that moment. 

Broad opines it's tough to battle 50,000 Australians

Stuart Broad described that the battle of the English cricketers that day was not just with Mitchell Starc or Scott Boland but against the 50,000 fans who were also intimidating the batters on the pitch.

"I’ve seen it plenty of times in Australia when not just the Australian cricket team grab the game but the whole stadium does and you felt the whole energy of everything change. It’s so difficult to do because you’re not just facing Mitchell Starc, you’re facing a 50,000 crowd and the whole energy becomes quite intimidating," Broad added.

Nevertheless, the second D/N Test is scheduled at Brisbane on December 4, and it will be a crucial one if England wants to get the edge back from Australia after their first loss at Perth.