“His body language is not that of a Test-match bowler” - Stuart Broad slams English pacer after poor Ashes outing

Former England pacer and commentator Stuart Broad has slammed the England seamer Gus Atkinson, who has put up disappointing outings against the Australian Test side in the ongoing Ashes 2025-26 campaign.

Notably, Atkinson played three out of four Tests in the ongoing campaign and managed to grab only six wickets at an average of 47.33 and a strike rate of 73. Unfortunately, he sustained a hamstring injury during the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne and was subsequently ruled out of the remainder of the tour.

Speaking exclusively on Sky Sports, Broad asserted that he had no doubts about Atkinson's ability as a fast bowler but requested him to display better body language in the longest format of the game.

“Atkinson has amazing attributes. He still averages under 25 with the ball, he wobbles the seam, he can swing it, he’s tall, he’s consistent, but his body language is not that of a Test-match bowler in the battle. He was work to do on that," Stuart Broad told Sky Sports.

“That doesn’t matter so much when you’re playing teams you should dominate and beat, but not against top teams, so his areas of improvement aren’t attributes or mental ability to cope with pressure, but letting your team know you are leading this group,” he added.

Furthermore, the former England seamer Broad has also offered a piece of advice to Atkinson on how he used to deal with pressure, an advice which could help him in the future Tests in his career. 

“I read a piece about Tiger Woods, who would never look at the floor when golfing. His eyes would always be above the horizon, which is really strong for body language. When I was under pressure or struggling I would keep my eyes above the horizon because then someone couldn’t tell if I’d bowled a good or bad ball. You’re constantly in the battle, and your opposition cannot feel like they are getting on top of you,” he concluded.

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