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| Wednesday, 17 March 2004 |
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'I am lucky to achieve it' says Murali Sa'adi Thawfeeq reporting from Asgiriya KANDY, Tuesday - Off-spinner Muttiah Mualitharan who became the third bowler in the history of Test cricket to take 500 wickets said that it was special moment for him to achieve it on his home ground in Kandy. Muralitharan who was born and schooled in Kandy, said it was not easy for anybody to take 500 Test wickets and that he was lucky to achieve it in 87 Tests. "It's a long career and throughout it I have bowled well. I am bowling really well in the past five or six years. A milestone is a big thing. Taking 500 wickets in Tests has only been done by two others. I am the third to do it, so it is something special," said Muralitharan. To achieve it against a team like world champions Australia had an extra poignancy for Muralitharan. "I played my first Test against them (in 1992). Taking the 500th wicket against Australia is a happy moment for me. They are very good players and they are the best team in the world. It is a challenge bowling against them," he said. The 31-year-old spinner said that he wants to play till the 2007 World Cup. "It will leave me with about 20 to 30 Tests so I might finish with about 600 or 650 wickets," he said. Mualitharan said the Test was evenly poised after the first day and the team that can sustain the pressure well will win. "The fall of 17 wickets in one day doesn't mean that the pitch is bad. The batsmen didn't play well and the bowlers capitalized on their errors. The wicket was flat and it was seaming and spinning a little bit. It is a typical Asgiriya pitch. I think the pitch at Galle turned more than this," said Muralitharan. Sri Lanka coach John Dyson hailed Muralitharan's achievement as 'a fantastic one' and said: "He is a great trainer, a great thinker about the game and a great performer. I am very pleased for him. I hope he goes on to take 200-300 wickets in Test cricket." The coach also praised the bowling of Nuwan Zoysa and Chaminda Vaas. Muttiah Muralitharan FactBox LONDON, Tuesday (Reuters) Factbox on Sri Lanka off spinner Muttiah Muralitharan, who became on Tuesday the third bowler to take 500 Test wickets. Born : April 17, 1972; Kandy, Sri Lanka. 1992 - Makes test debut against Australia. 1993 - Plays in his first one-day international against India. 1995 - Called for throwing by Australian umpire Darrell Hair, prompting continuing debate about the legality of his throwing action. 1997 - Takes 100th test wicket against New Zealand. 1998 - Takes 200th test wicket against England. Called again for throwing during one-day international in Adelaide, prompting the Sri Lanka team to leave the field in protest. Subsequent tests show that Muralitharan bowls with a bent elbow due to a congenital deformity. 1999 - Named as one of Wisden's five cricketers of the year. First county cricket appearance for Lancashire 2000 - Takes 300th test wicket against South Africa. 2002 - Becomes the youngest and quickest player to reach 400 test wickets, reaching the mark in Sri Lanka's third test against Zimbabwe, only the 72nd test of his career. 2003 - Joins county side Kent 2004 - Becomes only the third man after Courtney Walsh and Shane Warne to take 500 test wickets in Sri Lanka's second Test against Australia in Kandy. |
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