STUART BROAD was just one ball away from being taken out of the England attack before his fairytale ending at The Oval.
And he admitted his legs turned to jelly as he ran in for the delivery that dismissed Todd Murphy.
It saw 37-year-old Broad — in his last professional game — kept on by captain Ben Stokes.
And he went on to claim the match-winning wicket of Alex Carey to tie The Ashes 2-2.
Broad, whose first five balls of the Murphy over cost six runs, said: “Weirdly, Stokesy told me before that over, before I got Todd Murphy out, ‘This will be your last over’.
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“So I was running in knowing that would be my last ball in professional cricket.
“My legs went a bit jelly-like. I was saying to myself, ‘Just hit the pitch as hard as you can, don’t bowl a floaty half-volley for your last ball in international cricket’ — and he nicked it.
“That’s why I managed to get another over.”
Broad bowled two more overs, finishing with the final wicket of Carey — his 604th in 167 Tests.
And the first few days of his his retirement have been almost as dramatic.
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He went straight into a new career as a Sky Sports pundit - looking glum due to a rain break during a double header in The Hundred at Lord's.
And having waltzed off with the final two wickets of this summer's thrilling five Tests against Australia, Broad is now in talks to become a last-minute signing for Strictly Come Dancing.
His fiancée Mollie King, 36, starred on the BBC dance show in 2017.
