Gary Lineker gives emphatic verdict after Stuart Broad gets fairytale England Ashes ending
England icon Stuart Broad stepped up in the closing stages of The Ashes
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Gary Lineker has hailed Stuart Broad as 'great' after the England bowler got the fairytale ending to his cricket career.
The 37-year-old confirmed just days ago that he'd be walking away from the sport after more than 15 years of playing at the highest level.
England needed to beat Australia to draw the series and prevent the visitors from securing a first victory on these shores since 2001.
And Broad got the ending he wanted, taking the final two wickets to bow out on a high note.
Stuart Broad bowled England to victory in the fifth and final Ashes Test
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Lineker then took to Twitter, hailing Broad as 'great' and congratulating England on their victory at The Oval.
"Brilliant win for @englandcricket and what a finale for the great @stuartbroad8," tweeted the former England football star.
"A wonderful series win….well, pretty much."
England were arguably better than Australia for most of The Ashes, with Bazball winning plaudits from around the cricket world.
But they were unable to wrestle back the urn, with rain in the fourth test at Old Trafford a huge factor.
England started the final session needing seven wickets to get the better of their fiercest rivals.
And they managed that achievement to draw the series, with hopes high they'll be able to win the next Ashes in 2025.
Speaking after the win, Broad admitted he was delighted to have stepped up in the closing stages.
"It was absolutely wonderful. The crowd were unbelievable," said the bowler, who is now poised to work as a commentator going forward.
"It was so loud and we just jumped on the back of that. To contribute to the team with two wickets is very special.
"When you make that decision you wonder what your last ball will be so to take a wicket to win an Ashes Test match is pretty cool."
Broad also found time to praise Moeen Ali, who is quitting Test cricket, as well as Chris Woakes for their displays.
"I thought Chris Woakes and Moeen Ali set the tone absolutely unbelievably," continued the England legend.
"Woakesy picked up a couple of wickets, particularly Steve Smith, who has just been a wonderful player to play against all these years.
"Once we got a couple we really started to believe.
"A special mention to Moeen, he's not officially announced he's moving on, but we've played a lot together and he's been such a special friend.
"To put that performance in to help England win an Ashes Test match will be a dream come true for him."
As for England skipper Ben Stokes, he's admitted he couldn't have been prouder of his team for levelling the series and ensuring Australia don't get all of the bragging rights.
“From being 2-0 down, to sit here saying we’ve managed to level the series, playing in the way in which we did, I couldn’t be any more proud," he said.
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Gary Lineker has hailed Stuart Broad after England beat Australia to draw Ashes series
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“We continued everything in the style of play we’ve done over the last 15 months and it’s basically been everything I think I could have asked for, minus getting the urn back.”
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