Broad suffers fractured nose

Stuart Broad has suffered a fractured nose after being hit in the face by a bouncer from Varun Aaron, on the third day of the fourth Investec Test at Old Trafford, but England are hopeful he will be available for the final Test at The Oval.

An update from the ECB on Saturday evening said: "He will be treated over the course of the week and the medical team anticipates he will be available for the fifth Investec Test."

Broad's injury came when he tried to pull Aaron - following consecutive sixes off the previous two deliveries - and the ball squeezed between his grille and visor, striking him at the top of the nose and drawing blood.

An unsteady Broad was helped off the field by the physio before being stitched in the dressing room. Shortly after tea he was seen walking around the boundary with a bandaged nose as he made the trip to hospital from where watched England wrap up an innings victory.

Broad tweeted: "Amazing win that!! Watched the last 8 wickets in a hospital! 2-1 One to go come on boys!"

At the presentation, Alastair Cook was hopeful that Broad, who claimed 6 for 25 on the first day at Old Trafford and was Man of the Match, would be fit for The Oval which starts on August 15.

"It was a really nasty blow but hopefully there aren't any cheek fractures," Cook said. "We wish him well and hopefully he hasn't ruined his good looks."

Cook also revealed that James Anderson was ill on the third day and praised the effort to send down nine overs, during which Anderson maintained his hold over Virat Kohli by removing him for 7 shortly before leaving the field for just over half an hour. "It was a great effort for him to get off his bed and bowl those overs," Cook said. "We hope he will be fully fit for The Oval."

Although England surged to victory in Broad's absence, the combined figures of Chris Woakes and Chris Jordan in the match - 40-8-172-4 - was a reminder of how vital he is to the attack. If Broad was unable to play the final Test it could open the way for a recall for Steven Finn, who was in the squad for Old Trafford, or Liam Plunkett if he overcomes the ankle injury which ruled him out of this match.

Broad's injury was similar to one suffered by Craig Kieswetter, the Somerset wicketkeeper, a few weeks ago when a ball from David Willey, Northamptonshire's left-arm seamer, struck him in the face between the grille and helmet. Kieswetter needed surgery on his eye socket.

Cook praised his team for sticking together in the tough times as they achieved their second successive Test victory over India. He admitted his side had hit "rock bottom" after a thumping defeat against the same opposition at Lord's and accepted that, after a poor run of form with the bat and seven defeats in nine Tests as captain, he was running out of chances to arrest the slide.

But, as he celebrated consecutive wins for the first time in more than a year, Cook credited the team's hard work and self belief in moments of difficulty for the change in fortune.

"We were at rock bottom at Lord's," Cook said. "That was a tough moment as a side. You run out of chances in my position. But we stuck together as a team in some tough moments. We kept hanging in there and we kept believing.

"Even when we went one down in the series, we felt we could still win. I still had a lot of confidence. We felt that if we did the hard work, the good results would return. But yes, the longer it went without a win, the harder it was getting.

"There was a glimmer of light in the runs from the younger guys. We were playing well in patches, but then having a very bad session. Then it was a matter of the senior guys stepping up the plate. We did that here: we set the tone on the first morning and we sustained the intensity we had in Southampton throughout this match."

Cook had particular praise for Moeen Ali, who claimed another four wickets with his offspin. "Moeen has improved rapidly," Cook said. "I haven't seen an improvement like that. But he has worked incredibly hard and he is a canny operator. A little part of their game must have been to attack Moeen. But he bowls at really good pace and he doesn't bowl many bad balls. He has learned to hold an end up and when the ball spins, he is dangerous. He has improved at a huge rate.