Former England fast bowler Stuart Broad has stood by his criticism of Pakistan’s Test side, insisting England remain strong favourites to complete a 3-0 series victory after their dominant win at Headingley.

Broad had questioned Pakistan’s quality before the opening Test, arguing that England failing to win the three-match series would represent a major disappointment.

“Pakistan are a weaker side. There is no doubting that. They are a very poor side. If England don’t come away with a Test series win, it really is a huge failure for them,” Broad had said.

Pakistan subsequently suffered an innings and 103-run defeat at Headingley, being bowled out for 171 and 135 as England took a 1-0 lead in the series.

Speaking on a recent podcast alongside former England captain Jos Buttler, Broad revisited his assessment and made it clear that his opinion had not changed despite the criticism his comments received from Pakistani fans.

“I don’t know what we can really know about this team, but, as I said in the last podcast, which quite a few Pakistani fans took exception to, Pakistan are a poor side, and England should win this series 3-0,” Broad said.

“If they don’t, it would be an absolute disaster. I haven’t changed my opinion on that at all. England should win this Test series 3-0; they’ve simply got a stronger side.”

The former pacer also compared the current Pakistan side with teams from previous eras, claiming the Green Shirts no longer possess some of the qualities that traditionally made them a difficult opponent.

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Pakistan have long been associated with producing quick and skilful fast bowlers capable of generating late movement, reverse swing and genuine pace, while their batting and all-round talent has often provided individual brilliance.

However, Broad believes those characteristics are missing from the current Test setup.

“Pakistan have not won a Test series since 1996. I’ve always looked at their side and thought they bring pace, they bring flair, and they bring players who can do things that aren’t in the coaching manual — swing the ball late, reverse-swing it and bowl with genuine pace. Now, they just don’t have that,” he said.

Stuart Broad did, however, reserve considerable praise for Pakistan seamer Mohammad Abbas, whom he identified as the standout bowler in the current attack.

The former England pacer highlighted Abbas’ consistency and experience, while also pointing to his successful spells in English county cricket with Derbyshire, Hampshire and Nottinghamshire.

“They’ve got Mohammad Abbas, who is their best bowler and a fine, brilliant bowler,” Broad said. “He has performed brilliantly for Derbyshire, Hampshire and Nottinghamshire, and in Test cricket he would get into most Test sides in the world.”

Broad was less impressed with the remainder of Pakistan’s pace attack, suggesting Mohammad Ali and Khurram Shahzad failed to pose the same threat during the opening Test.

“But the rest of the seamers, Mohammad Ali and Khurram Shahzad, didn’t really frighten me,” he concluded.

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