I'll wait until he's consistently taking wickets before getting too excited, four of his wickets in the 4th Test were "after the lord mayor's show" and tailenders, even Harmison has been known to perform once in a while.
I just hope England don't follow the thinking of one former England cricketer suggesting that Broad can step into Flintoff's role. I would give it a lot of thought before not going that way, at least not just yet. Our batting has collapsed three times in 24 months, our team has beaten only Pakistan and Australia since 2005, not including regular series and regular relatively easy wins over windies and kiwis. While I don't like the set up of the "World Championship", the rankings don't lie and England were SIXTH.
I'd want to see Broad make a hundred somewhere and get his bowling average down below 30-32 before proclaiming him a world class all-rounder and/or using him as such. He's still only made seven scores over 40, none over 76 and eight scores under 10. England tried him at seven in the 4th Test, got bowled out for 102 and lost by an innings. Only when he's shown more consistency with the ball and done a bit more with the bat would I promote him that one place to seven. It may not seem much of a change with Swann at eight, but the batting order of Broad, Swann, Harmison, Anderson and Onions scored a mere six runs between them in the 4th Test, 1st innings score of 102 and I can see that being repeated, maybe not every time but enough to hamper England's prospects of becoming a top team.
Broad is far from secured in the side for his bowling and has yet to prove himself as a proper batsman - he needs a hundred before he can claim to be a top seven batsman proper. But I don't have too much doubt he will be seen as the "next Ian Botham" and be thrown in at the deep end as England are obsessed with five bowlers, with playing an all-rounder and did everything they could to get Flintoff back in the side every chance they had. Did this quest for the "next Ian Botham" not hamper the careers of Test players like DeFreitas, White, Cork, Gough and even Flintoff? White was about the closest, the rest were at best bowling all-rounders. Of those named only White (eventually) and Flintoff made hundreds and all named were more capable of making handy fifties than match winning hundreds - Flintoff did make match winning hundreds, but not that many and not that often. Does Broad have the temperament to make a hundred? There's only one way to prove it, for him to make one. Maybe the ECB should ask Notts to let him bat up the order for them and then tell him to show he can make one. While he plays for England through the summer will he get that chance? Best chance he might get is promoted in a one dayer or in a warm up tour match
