Stuart Broad sad to see 'great competitor' Ryan Harris retiring
Saturday 4 July 2015 13:41, UK
England bowler Stuart Broad has led the tributes to Australian seamer Ryan Harris, who has been forced to retire through injury.
Harris has retired from cricket due to a long-standing knee injury, just four days before the start of the Investec Ashes series in Cardiff.
The 35-year-old, who played in 27 Tests for Australia, was given the medical advice after a scan on his right knee on Friday.
Broad, who has been preparing to line up against Harris in the series, tweeted: “Really sad to hear this, great competitor and from the beers I've shared with him a top, top bloke.”
Former England captain Michael Vaughan was fulsome in his praise of Harris, and feels his absence will be strongly felt by the tourists this summer.
“Congrats on a fantastic career Ryan Harris..Great bowler and a even better bloke.... Massive blow for Australia,” Vaughan wrote on Twitter.
“Ryan Harris IMO was Australia's most dangerous threat in English conditions...”
Ex-England all-rounder Graeme Swann, who retired midway through an Ashes series in December 2013, said: “Congratulations to Ryan Harris on a great career. His record speaks for itself and he's a great guy too. A massive blow for the Aussies.”
Yorkshire batsman Tim Bresnan rated Harris highly as an opponent, added: “Top bloke as well Ryan Harris and comfortably one of the best bowlers I've ever faced. Wish him well with the future.”
Dominic Cork, who played 37 Tests for England, told Sky Sports News HQ: “He’s a solid performer and it is sad news because he brings a lot of experience. He’s not brash, he’s not really a sledger and he runs in all day for whoever his captain is.
“He also has five five-fors in his Test career and four of them were against England, so this is another little reminder to Australia that things aren’t going as well as they would like them to in the build-up to this series.
“Michael Clarke has suddenly lost a very experienced player and this will be disruptive.”
Watch every ball of the first Investec Test live on our dedicated channel, Sky Sports Ashes, from 10am on Wednesday.
