For the young guys in their first Ashes Test, England's win over Australia is a special moment but there is no resting on laurels

  • Stuart Broad said England's first Test win over Australia was nearly perfect
  • Broad believes the younger players in the England side will now kick-on
  • The bowler insists complacency will not be an issue for the second Test

I hesitate to describe any performance as perfect but that certainly was not far off. You could sense the nervous energy around the stadium on the first morning and to come out and play the way we did against a top-class Australian side is incredibly gratifying for everyone involved in this England team. 

There are still a lot of areas we can improve but playing like this can only give us enormous confidence going into the rest of the series.

We want to play thrilling, exciting cricket which England fans can be proud of and I think we’ve managed to do that over the past few days. Even on a pitch which didn’t have much pace or carry, we maintained the aggressive intent we’ve showed throughout the summer and really took the game to the Australians on a very un-English wicket.

Stuart Broad said that England's first Test display against Australia in Cardiff was not far off perfect

Stuart Broad said that England's first Test display against Australia in Cardiff was not far off perfect

Broad finished with figures of 3-39 in Australia's second innings, taking three key wickets as England won

Broad finished with figures of 3-39 in Australia's second innings, taking three key wickets as England won

Broad (right) praised the style in which Alastair Cook captained the England team to victory over Australia

Broad (right) praised the style in which Alastair Cook captained the England team to victory over Australia

We can now look forward to the Lord’s Test — where the wicket will probably have a bit more pace and bounce than this one — with a massive amount of confidence. The Aussies will come back hard, no doubt, and there is absolutely no resting on our laurels. 

Australia won the first Test comprehensively in 2005 but went on to lose the series so there will be no let-up from us now. We simply can’t afford that. But it’s a great position to be and a big psychological boost to be 1-0 up after one Test.

One of my best mates, Matt Prior, always made a big thing about enjoying our victories and there’s no doubt we’re going to do that this time around. We certainly won’t go overboard but it’s vital for the team to enjoy this together. We’ve worked hard for it and for the young guys especially, this is a special moment.

I remember playing my first Ashes Test and there’s no doubt it’s a daunting experience playing against players you’ve grown up watching on TV. So it’s especially gratifying that so many of our young players who were playing in their first Ashes match produced such exceptional performances.

A lot of the credit will rightly go to Joe Root but the way Moeen Ali bowled and batted really was outstanding. Mo took vital wickets at vital times and his runs on the second morning were absolutely key. He cannot have been far off being man of the match. 

Mark Wood, Adam Lyth and Jos Buttler all made really important contributions as well and it bodes well that all the younger less experienced players appeared to relish being in the heat of an Ashes battle.

Another area we’ve worked incredibly hard on has been our catching and that hard work seems to be paying off. I know a lot of people thought we were on holiday in Spain before the series but we put in a huge amount of work on our slip catching in particular and some of the catches we took in this match were of the highest class. 

Ian Bell was outstanding at second slip. It’s such an important boost for the bowlers knowing that catches will be taken and it looks like all the hard work is starting to pay off.

Broad also credited Moeen Ali for crucial contributions with both the bat and the ball for England in the Test

Broad also credited Moeen Ali for crucial contributions with both the bat and the ball for England in the Test

Broad admitted that he was pleased to remove Australia captain Michael Clarke on Saturday

Broad admitted that he was pleased to remove Australia captain Michael Clarke on Saturday

Broad is already relishing the beginning of the second Test at Lord's against Australia on Thursday

Broad is already relishing the beginning of the second Test at Lord's against Australia on Thursday

As well as the catching, I thought Cooky captained the side superbly this week. Trevor Bayliss has made it clear he wants this to be Alastair’s team and I thought the way he captained, with some clever, innovative fields, was exceptional all week.

On a personal note, it was nice to get Australia captain Michael Clarke out again. I’ve got him out a few times down the years and, although this wasn’t the pitch you’d want to bowl short on, it was nice to see him a little bit on the back foot when he was driving at me.

But for now, let’s enjoy the moment. I’ve been lucky enough to be part of some memorable England wins down the years and this one feels pretty special. This is a young, exciting England side at the start of what is going to be a massive series. But as starts go, it doesn’t get much better than that!

 

No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.

Who is this week's top commenter? Find out now