Murali captures 700th Test wicket - 'Hungry' Murali may extend career

'Hungry' Murali may extend career
Muttiah Muralitharan
Muralitharan is closing in on Shane Warne's world record
Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan may play on for another four years to achieve 1,000 wickets in Test cricket.

Muralitharan, 35, reached 700 - eight short of Shane Warne's world record - as Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh by an innings to seal a 3-0 series triumph.

"It is a big achievement taking 700 wickets but I think I can achieve a little bit more," Muralitharan said.

"The challenge is whether I can take 1,000 before I retire. I'm thinking about playing till the next World Cup."

Two Tests in Australia in November will give him a chance to take over from Warne.

But the off-spinner, who has been targeted by Australian fans in the past over his unorthodox action, is playing down expectations about achieving the feat there.

"The record will come in the near future, but I'm not sure it will happen in Australia because the wickets there usually help fast bowlers," he said.

"I don't know how much I will get to bowl in Australia because our fast bowlers could grab most of the wickets."

Muralitharan has played 113 Tests since making his debut in Australia in 1992 and moved from 600 to 700 Test wickets in just 12 matches.

"So many years at the top takes a lot out of you but I am still hungry for wickets and that is what matters," he added.
Is Muralitharan better than Warne?

By K.R. Nayar, Staff Reporter
Published: July 16, 2007, 00:03

Dubai: Muttiah Muralitharan achieved the 700-wicket milestone recently and is just eight wickets short of Shane Warne's world record tally of 708 from 145 Test matches.

The highlight of this achievement is also the fact that Muralitharan has played in only 113 Test matches.

Does that make him the world's greatest and most effective spinner? Is he even better than Warne?

I have been fortunate to watch both these great bowlers closely, especially at net practice. Warne turns the ball away from the stumps yet he forces the batsman to commit mistakes. Variety is his forte and he keeps the batsman guessing all the time.

On the other hand, Muralitharan bowls on to the stumps, which strengthens his chances of getting wickets more than Warne. He is also unplayable, especially on turning surfaces.

For Warne, the state of the wicket did not matter at all. He could trap batsmen with his loop and googlies even on brilliant batting tracks.

What has impressed me most about Warne is his thinking ability and I believe that it is his intelligence that has got him most of his wickets.

Once while talking about Warne, Sri Lankan star batsman Kumar Sangakkara had said: "Warne is one of the shrewdest bowlers I have ever faced. He toys with your mind ... to the extent that he will even let you know how he is planning to get you out. He can literally bluff you out."

Vicious turns

Muralitharan is able to generate those vicious turns, but what makes him special are those deliveries that go straight and his doosra that spins in the opposite direction.

Controversy over his bowling action did mar his reputation. His action does not look as clean as Warne's, yet he deserves all the credit for his wickets.

Before Muralitharan, cricket did have terrific off-spinners, but no one transformed off-spin into such an effective weapon.

Warne retired at the age of 37 and Muralitharan at 35 looks fit to play for 2 more years. It should be no surprise if Muralitharan goes on to become the first bowler ever to take 1,000 wickets, but the fact remains that both these spinners will glitter forever in the history of the game.

Murali captures 700th Test wicket
Third Test, Kandy, day four: Sri Lanka 500-4 bt Bangladesh 131 & 176 by an innings and 193 runs
Scorecard

Muttiah Muralitharan celebrates his 700th Test wicket
Murali is the second most prolific bowler ever in Test cricket

Muttiah Muralitharan claimed his 700th Test wicket as Sri Lanka completed an innings and 193-run win over Bangladesh to seal a 3-0 Test series triumph.

The off-spinner (6-54) reached the mark with the final wicket, which took him to within eight victims of retired Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne.

Sri Lanka declared on their overnight 500-4 and the Tigers made a good start to reach lunch at 106-2 on day four.

But Muralitharan ran through them as they went from 123-2 to 176 all out.

The 35-year-old was mobbed by his team-mates and cheered wildly by the crowd in his home town Kandy after finishing with match figures of 12-82 to close in on his great friend and rival Warne.

Bangladesh, who were outclassed in the previous two games and on the first three days here, began the fourth morning hoping to regain some pride.

And Shahriar Nafees (64) got them off to a decent start by putting on 47 with Javed Omar (22) before the latter fended a short Lasith Malinga delivery to first slip.


606: DEBATE
Murali is a great bowler, but Shane Warne will always be better

SG

Habibul Bashar's miserable run of form continued when he attempted a wild slog at Muralitharan and was comprehensively bowled for 15, making it a total of 66 runs in the series for the former skipper.

Muralitharan sparked the afternoon collapse when quicker deliveries saw Nafees edge to first slip and skipper Mohammad Ashraful trapped lbw.

Mushfiqur Rahim drove Sujeewa de Silva to point and Rajin Saleh was snapped up at second slip off the same bowler, while Tushar Imran flicked Malinga straight to mid-wicket.

The rest crumbled to Sri Lanka's finest ever bowler, with Mashrafe Mortaza holing out to long-on, Shahadat Hossain bowled trying to slog-sweep and Syed Rasel spooning a catch to mid-off.

Muralitharan needed only 12 Tests to move from 600 to 700 and could well break Warne's record in November when, ironically, Sri Lanka visit Australia for two Tests.