Stuart Broad Delivers for England on Day 2 in Grenada

There was a joke doing the rounds on Twitter towards the end of the first day of the second Test between West Indies and England in Grenada. 

It was getting towards the close of play, and the light was fading fast, leading to several people on the social-media site to poke fun at one of the tourists' bowlers, including David Standring:

Poor Stuart Broad. Back in 2011, a blog post on www.thefulltoss.com described him as “cricketing Marmite.” It doesn't seem like much has changed in the four years since that article was published.

Despite the angelic face, the heartwarming smile and the burning desire to do well for his country, some just find Broad hard to swallow. Like Marmite, of course.

On the opening day of England’s second match in the Caribbean, he did not bowl well.

There was a distinct lack of speed, as well as a failure to make the most of a seamer-friendly surface after his captain, Alastair Cook, had won the toss and opted to stick the opponents in.

Sure, he took a wicket. Darren Bravo was his solitary victim on Tuesday, caught at first slip by Cook after poking his bat out at a wide delivery.

The left-handed batsman was visibly frustrated by his error in judgment, most probably because the ball was never in danger of hitting his stumps.

It was not a rarity from Broad, as George Dobell pointed out in his end-of-play report for ESPN Cricinfo: 

"

Not a single ball in Stuart Broad's five-over opening spell would have hit the stumps.

While he gained, at times, impressive bounce and carry, such qualities are of limited use if the batsman is not obliged to play.

It was a waste of the new ball.

"

Fast-forward 24 hours and Broad had finished West Indies’ first innings with figures of four for 61.

Bowling with pace and venom, the 28-year-old tore his way through the lower order of the home side. Paul Newman of the Daily Mail took note of the speed of the delivery that dismissed Denesh Ramdin:

Not everyone was convinced, however. Arthur Goodard and Ian Marshall certainly were not ready to sing Broad's name from the rooftops, judging from their tweets:

The difference between the two days rather sums up Broad as an international bowler.

He has frustrated and delighted in almost equal measure since his Test debut back in 2007. You’re never quite sure if you’re going to get a mesmerising spell or an entirely forgettable one.

Injuries have hampered him of course, most recently a serious knee problem that required surgery before the Cricket World Cup. There has also been times when he has seemingly been intent only on testing the middle of the pitch.

And yet, for all the criticism that comes his way, Broad has been a fantastic bowler for his country.

In the past two years, he has taken 60 wickets in 12 Test appearances. His current career tally stands at 276, putting him in sixth place on England’s all-time list.

The 28-year-old has claimed 10 victims in a Test on two occasions, the same combined tally as seamers Bob Willis, Brian Statham, Matthew Hoggard and Darren Gough.

He has also taken seven wickets twice in an innings in the longest format, as well as two Test hat-tricks.

Despite those days when he looks ineffective and inadequate, there are also those spells where he appears capable of striking with each and every delivery he propels from his hand.

Kirsty Wigglesworth/Associated Press

The son of former England opening batsman Chris Broad, he picked up five for 37 versus Australia at the Oval in 2009, helping to skittle the tourists for 160 and, in the process, surrendering their grip on the Ashes.

Advancing to the 2013 series on home soil and Broad was at it again, this time taking six for 50 against the arch enemy to help England seal a series victory with a game to spare.

Set 299 to win, Australia reached 109 without loss before losing all 10 wickets for 113 runs in an extended final session at Chester-le-Street, Durham.

Broad cut a swath through the visiting order on the fourth evening, targeting the stumps to great effect. The delivery that cleaned up Michael Clarke, in particular, was a sight to behold:

That is the beauty of Broad—he can go from distinctly average to devastatingly brilliant in the same day.