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The Ashes Thread
Topic Started: Nov 10 2006, 01:56 PM (4,472 Views)
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McGrath to retire after World Cup

"BBC Sport"
 

Australia seam bowler Glenn McGrath will retire from international cricket after next year's World Cup.
His decision comes two days after Shane Warne said he would quit international cricket after the current Ashes series.

McGrath, who is 36, said playing his last Test on his home ground in Sydney next month would be a "fantastic end" to his Test career.

McGrath has taken 555 wickets in 122 Tests and is third on the all-time list behind Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan.

"Sydney will be my last Test match which will be a fantastic end for me because this is my home ground and my favourite ground in the world," McGrath told a news conference in Melbourne on Saturday.

"It's only in the last few games that I've really thought about [retirement]. It is a tough decision as well as being an easy decision.

"Everything is exactly where I wanted it to be but it is getting a lot tougher to leave home because the kids are growing up.

"I've still got four months of cricket left if it all goes well and I will sit back and take a look at things then. The last thing I want to do is rush into something else."

The World Cup takes place in the West Indies in March and April.

Australian newspapers had said McGrath might retire before that tournament to help his wife Jane in her battle against cancer.

McGrath took eight months out of the game earlier this year to take care of her before returning to action at the ICC Champions Trophy in September.

He rejoined the Test side for the Ashes and took six wickets to help Australia win the first Test in Brisbane.

His double-wicket maiden late on day four of the third Test in Perth swung the game in Australia's favour and led to them taking a winning 3-0 lead in the series.

McGrath admitted he had been forced into announcing his retirement earlier than agreed with Shane Warne.

"The plan we came up with was for Shane to announce [his retirement] before the Melbourne game and I was going to announce it before Sydney," he said.

"With the scrutiny I wanted to get it over and done with so we could concentrate on the last two Tests.

"Going through a Test match, trying to deny that I'm retiring without lying is a bit tough."

McGrath made a habit of dismissing the best of the world's batsmen - he claimed the wicket of West Indies star Brian Lara 15 times and England's Mike Atherton on 19 occasions.

Cricket Australia chief executive officer James Sutherland said McGrath had achieved the rare distinction of being a consistent match-winner in both Test and one-day cricket for 13 years.

"They say bowlers win matches - they must have been thinking of players like Glenn McGrath when they said that," Sutherland said.

"His remorseless accuracy and forensic probing of the slightest weakness in a batsman's technique is legendary."

After this series, Australia do not have another Test for 11 months.

Geoff Lawson, who preceded McGrath as a seamer with Australia and New South Wales, told BBC Five Live the announcement had not come as a complete shock.

"Only a couple of days ago - in the middle of the Shane Warne retirement announcement - Glenn said he still had a couple of years left in him.

"But for those who have been suggesting over the last few months that it may be the swansong for Glenn McGrath if Australia did regain the Ashes, it's not a surprise," he said.

"At 36, nearing 37, I suppose the body tends to find things a little bit tougher and therefore retirement becomes a much easier decision."
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The Boxing Day Test (4th Test) starts in Melbourne at 11:30pm tonight (in the UK) or in the morning if you live in Australia!

England can't win the Ashes but hopefully they can still win the final two games!
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4th Test :: Day 1 :: Melbourne

England: 159
Australia: 48-2


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"BBC Sport"
 

Shane Warne took his 700th Test wicket as Australia skittled England for 159 on day one of the fourth Ashes Test.

Leg-spinner Warne bowled Andrew Strauss (50) to reach the mark and also removed Kevin Pietersen (21) to return 5-39.

Pacemen Brett Lee and Stuart Clark took two wickets each, and Glenn McGrath had his 150th Ashes victim, as the tourists struggled after winning the toss.

Andrew Flintoff dismissed Justin Langer and Lee with successive balls but the Aussies still closed on top on 48-2.

The home side dropped two catches and Adam Gilchrist missed an easy chance to stump Pietersen off Warne when he was on four but no blame could be attached to their bowlers.

Under heavy cloud cover at the MCG they gave England a thorough going over right from the start.

In the 15.4 overs possible between rain showers in the morning, the tourists were relieved to see only Alastair Cook back in the pavilion.

A Lee delivery caught the toe-end of his bat as he attempted to leave it.

But there was no let-up in the afternoon as Clark jagged one back in to have Ian Bell plumb lbw and Paul Collingwood (28) could have been out on several occasions during a torrid examination.

Umpire Rudi Koertzen gave him the benefit of the doubt against strong leg-before appeals from McGrath and Andrew Symonds, while Gilchrist could not hold on when the tall paceman found the edge.

Strauss should have been on his way for 41 when Matthew Hayden spilled an easy chance at gully off Clark but his a courage brought his eighth Test fifty off 130 balls.

A Melbourne crowd of around 90,000 reserved their biggest cheer of the day for the moment when arguably their most famous sporting son was finally brought on after 40 overs.

His start was far from auspicious and Collingwood, growing in confidence, swept him for four as England went past 100.

Lee ended the Durham man's charmed resistance with some extra bounce and away movement, Ponting holding on well at second slip, before Warne struck gold.

It was not his greatest ball ever, and the dismissal owed a fair deal to poor footwork from Strauss.

A superb catch at short extra-cover from Ponting handed Warne his next wicket when Chris Read - recalled in favour of Geraint Jones - drove hard, while Steve Harmison and Monty Panesar thrashed straight to mid-on.

In between that Pietersen was snaffled by Symonds attempting a big heave off Warne and McGrath, also in the last throes of a glittering career, achieved his own landmark when Sajid Mahmood lazily drove outside off-stump.

Flintoff landed some blows for England late in the piece by having Langer and Lee caught behind but his side had been pummelled yet again on Boxing Day.


Scorecard

Australia: J L Langer, M L Hayden, R T Ponting, M E K Hussey, M J Clarke, A Symonds, A C Gilchrist, S K Warne, B Lee, S R Clark, G D McGrath
England: A J Strauss, A N Cook, I R Bell, P D Collingwood, K P Pietersen, A Flintoff, C M W Read, S I Mahmood, M J Hoggard, S J Harmison, M S Panesar

(only change: Jones -> Read (England))
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Fair play to Warney, 700 wickets is great. Doesn't stop the bloke being instantly dislikeable and sometimes a total tosser.
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4th Test :: Day 2 :: Melbourne

Australia: 372-7
England: 159


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"BBC Sport"
 

Andrew Symonds hit a fine maiden Test century and Matthew Hayden plundered 153 as Australia ended day two of the fourth Test 213 runs ahead of England.

Andrew Flintoff, Matthew Hoggard and Steve Harmison struck in the morning to leave the Aussies on 84-5, 75 behind.

But Symonds (154) and Hayden added 279 before the latter and Adam Gilchrist fell to Sajid Mahmood before stumps.

Australia - 3-0 up in the series - closed on 372-7, with England looking weary and short of inspiration.

It was a complete turnaround from the first session, when the tourists put their Boxing Day batting misery behind them with a fine bowling display.

Flintoff and Hoggard caused Ricky Ponting and Hayden problems with a combination of probing lines and movement through the air.

Ponting skied a pull off Flintoff to Alastair Cook at mid-wicket before Hoggard, who was carrying a slight rib injury, comprehensively bowled the prolific Mike Hussey. 

When Harmison produced a pearler that bounced and seamed away to have Michael Clarke caught behind in his first over, England were in charge.

However, with clouds gathering over the MCG, things stopped happening for them.

Hayden and Symonds did have to ride their luck early on, looking nervous outside off-stump.

And the stand could have ended two balls after lunch if Mahmood had hit the target from mid-off and run out Hayden.

But it was not long before the shackles which had previously prevented Symonds from blossoming as a Test player were cast off and he found the deep boundaries with embarrassing ease at times.

Hoggard was thrashed high over cover off successive deliveries and lofted brutally over mid-wicket and there were scenes of delirium when he battered Paul Collingwood over long-on to reach three figures against the country of his birth.

Symonds celebrated further by blasting Kevin Pietersen over deep mid-wicket and down the ground before bludgeoning Hoggard twice through the covers in awesome displays of his power.

Friend and fellow Queenslander Hayden was inspired by that aggression and also freed his arms.

He crashed left-arm spinner Monty Panesar down the ground for six and over wide mid-on to bring up his fifth century in the last six Tests at the MCG.

His increasing contempt for the bowling was illustrated when he dispatched the wayward Mahmood over long-on for a mighty six.

Mahmood returned late in the day to induce edges from Hayden and Gilchrist to the wicket-keeper and Collingwood at second slip.

And England did have reasonable shouts for lbw against Symonds on 52 and 142 from Panesar and Flintoff.

But by the end even the 31-year-old's mis-timed shots were flying away to all parts, with the force very much with him and his team.


Scorecard

England's bowling plans leaked...
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It doesn't matter about the plans being leaked. By the looks of it the bowlers weren't sticking to them.
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4th Test :: Day 3 :: Melbourne

Australia: 419
England: 159 and 161

Australia win by an innings and 99 runs - Australia go 4-0 in the series


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"BBC Sport"
 

Australia bundled England out for 161 to win by an innings and 99 runs inside three days in the fourth Ashes Test.

The Aussies were dismissed for 419 in the morning, with Sajid Mahmood taking 4-100, but ran through the tourists.

Brett Lee took four wickets, Stuart Clark three and Shane Warne - in his final Test on his home ground - two.

The result puts Australia 4-0 up and needing a win in Sydney next week to clinch the first Ashes whitewash since England lost 5-0 to them in 1920/21.

That looks a distinct possibility based on the domination the Aussies enjoyed at the MCG.

England briefly rallied in the morning, with Andrew Symonds adding only two to his overnight 154 before getting a thick edge behind trying to play an expansive drive off Steve Harmison.

Mahmood then had Clark and Glenn McGrath caught close in and Chris Read finished with six catches after the Lancastrian had suffered at the hands of Warne, who made an entertaining 54-ball 40.

From then on, however, it was once again a tale of the visitors being exposed by accurate bowling on a pitch that had become easier to bat on.

McGrath consistently seamed the ball away just outside off-stump in a probing opening spell and should have had Alastair Cook lbw after the youngster passed 1,000 runs in his first calendar year of Test cricket.

The veteran paceman rapped him on the pad with a straight delivery that held its line but umpire Rudi Koertzen somehow ruled in his favour.

Fellow metronome Clark accounted for him soon after lunch anyway when a lazy drive led to an inside edge into middle-stump and McGrath then nipped one back into Ian Bell to win only the second lbw verdict of the match.

Clark was asking plenty of tough questions with a combination of swing and movement off the pitch.

Even Kevin Pietersen, moved up the order to four, had no answer to a beauty which jagged back in and went through a big gate.

Paul Collingwood and Andrew Strauss (31) drove loosely at Lee either side of tea, while Andrew Flintoff was undone by one that Clark angled in and was adjudged leg-before.

From then on it was a question of how long the tail could defy Warne.

The great leg-spinner rolled back the years to unfurl a series of vicious leg-breaks, googlies and the once-deadly flipper.

Mahmood and Harmison were lbw after being bamboozled by the flipper and slider, while Chris Read's bat was beaten at will during his 77-ball 26.

Monty Panesar cheered the sizeable English contingent in the crowd by delightful flicking Lee off his pads for four and driving Warne past mid-on for another boundary.

That joy was short-lived and he fended a vicious Lee delivery to Michael Clarke at fourth slip.

With shadows enveloping the outfield in the evening, Lee cleaned up Matthew Hoggard to wrap things up and end England's misery.


Scorecard

<_<

The next test is the 5th Test, from Sydney, which starts on the 2nd of January. That will be Shane Warne's last ever Test and Glenn McGrath's last test match (but he will retire after the WC).
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So shocking it's laughable. It's also now looking like we fluked the last Ashes.
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It shows how well we must have done to have won the Ashes :eek2:

(or it shows how bad Australia done :|)
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It wasn't us winning the Ashes, it was the Aussies losing them
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So what would be your 5th Test England team?
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Strauss
Vaughan
Cook
Pietersen
Bell
Collingwood
Read
Plunkett
Mahmood
Hoggard
Panesar ©

I'd send Flintoff home. Harmison is still too eratic for my liking. Monty would make a brilliant captain. Guaranteed to have the crowd on his side. Vaughan brings stability to a fragile batting order
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Monty captain :P What about Strauss :P
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Maybe they could do a joint job like Vaughan and Trescothick used to do. It'd be far better than having Flintoff as captain.
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Nah - Strauss all the way as captain (on his own).
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