Stuart Broad and England’s victory bid held up by Australia openers and rain at The Oval

Stuart Broad’s hopes of retiring in a blaze of glory threatened to go awry as his old rival David Warner helped Australia puncture the party atmosphere on day four of the final Ashes Test.

The stage seemed set for Broad to bow out in style following his shock announcement on Saturday night, as he was awarded a guard of honour by the tourists and then smashed his final ball as a batter into the crowd for six.

That left Australia chasing a mammoth 384 to win at the Kia Oval, 121 more than the ground record, placing England as heavy favourites as Broad began the chase for wickets alongside 41-year-old birthday boy James Anderson.

But Australia spoiled the party as Warner (58 not out) and Usman Khawaja (69 not out) carried the score to 135 without loss. In all England sent down 38 overs without a single concrete chance before rain brought an early end to proceedings midway through the afternoon session.

Broad bowled six overs for 15 but was unable to give the crowd the moment they wanted – an 18th career dismissal of Warner. England still need 10 wickets on the final day of an absorbing series, chasing a 2-2 scoreline and a share of the spoils, but there is now a real chance that the visitors could win outright on English soil for the first time in 22 years.

It would be a fine achievement if they managed it, requiring the eighth-highest fourth-innings chase in Test history, the second-best from an Australian side and the second-best in this country.

The start of the day belonged to Broad, the man who the south London public had turned out to see.

The previous evening, when he had announced his retirement from the game on The Oval pitch, Broad said: “It’s certainly emotional. It’s a blur. I still love playing the game, I love