‘Should we do a Coffee Run?’: Stuart Broad Reveals How he Revealed His Retirement Plan to James Anderson

England pacer James Anderson will certainly miss the company of his long-time bowling partner Stuart Broad whenever he takes the field next time in Test cricket.

Anderson and Broad formed the backbone of the English pace attack for over a decade. The legendary partnership was broken when Broad drew curtains on his illustrious Test career after playing the final game of the just-finished Ashes series on home soil.

The duo recently appeared in an interview on Sky Sports where Broad shared the story of how he broke the news of his retirement to Anderson.

A clip of the conversation was dropped on the official Twitter page of the broadcaster.

Keeping aside their on-field understanding, Broad and Anderson shared a great camaraderie off the field as well.

Broad informed Anderson about the major decision personally before making any official announcement.

Broad invited Anderson for coffee together at Starbucks where they would discuss the topic.

The plan was spoiled due to a couple of fans who followed the cricketers into the coffee shop.

“We had a 9 o’clock bus leave on Saturday morning. I texted Jimmy, ‘Should we do an 8:45 coffee run?’ I thought I would get him on his own and will tell him about my retirement. But top cricket fans followed us into Starbucks. So, I couldn’t get a moment with him,” Broad said.

An opportunity finally came when the duo boarded the team bus later on.

Reminiscing about the emotional moment, Broad said, “We were on the bus five minutes early. I shook my hands with Jim and said, ‘It’s a really hard thing to say but it feels the right time.’ Then we had a hug.”

The friendship between Broad and Anderson dates a long way back. They played their first international game together against New Zealand in 2008. Since then, the pair has shared the field in 138 matches, fetching as many as 537 scalps together.

With 604 wickets in 167 Tests, Broad concluded his career as the second-highest wicket-taker among fast-bowlers in the history of Test cricket.

Anderson holds the top place on the list, having picked 698 wickets in 183 games.