Tom Croft has hailed his former schoolmate and Tigers fan Stuart Broad as an iconic player of English cricket as he makes his 100th Test appearance.

Broad today became the 14th English cricketer, and only the third bowler, to reach a century of appearances when he was selected for the first Test against India.

Broad is a keen supporter of Tigers and even brought his England teammates Alastair Cook, James Anderson and James Taylor to Welford Road for the game against the Barbarians in 2014, and attended Oakham School with Croft.

And Croft says his century is reward for his dedication and hard work over the years.
 
“It’s incredible,” said Croft. “He has been an outstanding player from a fairly young age.
 
“It’s a huge achievement for himself and his family. I wish him all the best.
 
“It’s testament to all his hard work. He has had his ups, he’s had his downs but he stayed in there and he has become an iconic player of English cricket.
 
“He has worked hard and developed into one of the world’s best cricketers in terms of his bowling. It will be fantastic to see and I look forward to watching.”