Here's Why Stuart Broad Wears Headband Despite Having Short Hair

Stuart Broad, on Monday (July 31), retired from international cricket after starring on the fifth day of the final Ashes Test between England and Australia at The Oval in London.

He retired from the game as one of the most decorated fast-bowlers in the history of Test cricket. Stuart Broad ended his illustrious Test career in a fitting fashion as he picked the last two Australian wickets to fire England to a memorable 49-run win. The win saw England draw level in the five-match series as it ended 2-2.

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Set a target of 384 runs, Australia began well with the bat as their openers Usman Khawaja and David Warner added 140 runs for the first wicket. But once the partnership was broken by Chris Woakes, Australia kept losing wickets at regular intervals and were eventually all out for 334.

The last day of the Test was all about Stuart Broad as the England great bowed out of the game in style. He was one of England’s best performer in the series. The right-arm pacer finished as England’s leading wicket-taker with 22 scalps. During the course of the series, he also reached the 600-wicket mark in the longest format of the game.

Why does Stuart Broad wear a headband?

As Stuart Broad played his last Test, the English fans made sure to give him a fitting farewell. The fans cheered the veteran bowler throughout the day at The Oval. Not only that, dozens of fans were also seen sporting Stuart Broad’s trademark headband style.

And while it was a fitting tribute to one of England’s all-time greats, it also made many wonder the reason behind Stuart Broad sporting a headband despite having short hair. Well, the reason behind it was the rule change that barred the bowlers from applying saliva on the ball.

During the covid pandemic in 2020, Stuart Broad started wearing the headband after the players were told not to use sweat or saliva to give the ball a better chance of swinging. He sported it for the first time during the home series against West Indies in 2020.

“Headband has been added to stop sweat dripping down my face, so hopefully I get out the habit of touching my face while bowling,” Stuart Broad had tweeted that time.

In 2021, he briefly gave up wearing the band before he changed it mind after noticing he was not getting as many wickets as he admitted he “felt naked” without it.

“Everywhere I looked round the ground I could see little pockets of fans with them on. It was a really nice gesture to see headbands all around the crowd. It ended up being a little bit of a superstition after Covid. It really made me smile,” Stuart Broad said after the fifth Ashes Test.

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