South Africa vs England: Seamer Stuart Broad claims he is not the best bowler in the world

Stuart Broad does not consider himself to be England's best bowler despite being ranked as the world's number one. The 29-year-old seamer rose to the top of the ICC bowling rankings on the back of his match-winning display against South Africa on 16 January, but Broad thinks his England team-mate Jimmy Anderson and Protea Dale Steyn are superior.

Steyn has been forced to miss much of England's tour of South Africa with a shoulder problem, while Anderson has struggled to find his best form after returning from injury. Broad is in no doubt, though, that they are both still better bowlers than he is.

"It might sound odd, but I'm not the best bowler in the world," said Broad, according to The Mirror. "Dale Steyn is the bowler of our generation. Just have a look at his record, his wickets, his strike-rate, his average. He is the best bowler in the world.

"My dad always talks about Malcolm Marshall being the bowler of his generation, well Dale Steyn is the bowler of our generation."

Broad also hailed the career of his long-time new ball opening partner Jimmy Anderson, who became England's all-time leading wicket taker in Test match history in 2015. "I've been very privileged to play with Jimmy for a long time and he is the best bowler England have ever had in my view," he said.

"I didn't see Fred Trueman and didn't watch much of Ian Botham live, so you have to judge it on who you've seen bowl. I'm delighted to be at the top of that list because I've worked hard to stay fit and I've worked hard on consistency.

"But I'm not going to walk away thinking I'm a better bowler than Dale Steyn or Jimmy Anderson because that is not the case. It is just a nice feeling to have reached this through my performances."

Although Broad is thrilled with his individual achievement, his focus remains on helping the England team to climb the rankings. "It is great to see people moving up the rankings as that is how the team moves up and that is where the focus is, on getting the team to number one," he said of England, who are currently ranked fifth in Test cricket.