Stuart Broad hails Josh Tongue as England's best and most valuable bowler after Headingley heroics

Josh Tongue took five wickets in Pakistan's first innings as England secured a dominant victory by an innings and 103 runs at Headingley on August 20, 2026. Tongue and Ollie Robinson shared the spoils in the opening Test, with both pacers claiming five-wicket hauls in Pakistan's first innings. Robinson finished with eight wickets in the match and was named Player of the Match, while Tongue took eight wickets across both innings.

Speaking after the match, Stuart Broad assessed Tongue's value to England's Test cricket plans. Broad highlighted the pacer's fitness and ability to maintain his bowling workload as crucial factors in his emergence as a key player for the national side.

"I think he is England's best bowler. He is England's trump card really at the moment. The most valuable bowler that England have. He looks fit, he looks like he is bowling a good amount of overs, keeping his bowling maintenance rather than stopping and starting the whole time because he has had injury problems, right?," Broad was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.

Tongue's recent form across international cricket

Tongue's consistency across international cricket has been evident throughout 2025 and into 2026. The pacer took 19 wickets during England's Test series in India between June and August 2025, the most for England in that series. He also claimed a five-wicket haul of 5-134 at Adelaide Oval during the Third Test of the Ashes on December 17, 2025.

Broad emphasised that Tongue's fitness and sustained performance would be vital to England's prospects in the coming year. The former England pacer noted that Tongue's ability to bowl consistently without interruption represented a significant shift from his earlier career pattern.

"He looks fit, and he holds the key for England to be successful over the next year," the cricketer-turned-commentator signed off.

Also Read: 'I was just trying to be consistent,' says Ollie Robinson after eight-wicket match haul vs Pakistan

Pakistan's first innings saw Abdullah Shafique score 61 and Imam-ul-Haq contribute 42 in a 91-run partnership, but the batting order could not build on that foundation. Robinson's five-wicket haul in the first innings proved decisive, and Tongue's support with the ball ensured England's bowlers maintained control throughout Pakistan's innings. In the second innings, Pakistan managed only 135 all out, with Robinson and Tongue each taking three wickets alongside Jofra Archer's three-wicket contribution.