He is MURALI...

When the late Hanise Cronje first saw Muttiah Muralitharan in action, his eyes almost popped from under his helmet.

It was at Centurion Park, in early February 1993, a Sri Lanka under24 side were on a tour of South Africa with Sanath Jayasuriya its captain and Romesh Kaluwitharana and Marvan Atapattu were also in the squad along with a 21-year-old Muralitharan.

While South Africa under24, which also had Jonty Rhodes in the side, won the game, Murali left his calling card with returns of 4/60, and 6/62. Forget that five years later Cronje, a fine player of spin destroyed the Sri Lanka magician with the slog sweep in a Test at the same venue. More important on this occasion is how South Africa had first sight of the young man collecting his maiden 10-wicket haul and who today is now world cricket's leading wicket-taker.

They claim Murali as the world's best bowler; statistics prove that England's great enigmatic SF Barnes is better bowler in terms of strike rate: marginally perhaps, but better and you cannot manipulate such figures. Sri Lankans are going to dispute such a suggestion, only the myopic will attempt this and attempt to ridicule the suggestion. Sure, Barnes didn't play in many Tests, yet most of his wickets came from jousts in Australia and South Africa, the latter on matting and not in England.

Murali may have bowled on matting at school level, although there is no such record, while such transition requires a lot of development and adjustment. Questioned years ago brought a quiet smile.

The point about Cronje facing Muralitharan the first time as an eye-opening moment is because of the worry about his action. Later there were newspaper articles and photographs in sports magazines that queried the bowler; Cronje though said little, just that he "is a bowler with a different and interesting action".

What is also interesting is that Cronje is the one batsman who launched a pre-meditated assault on Murali the bowler in the Centurion Test of 1998. He had a certain style about his technique and his ability to tackle spinners in such a way left Arjuna Ranatunga realising that on that particular afternoon, the plan for a change was not going to work.

Before that 1992/93 tour of South Africa in what was a cluttered summer with the first Test series in 22 years along with a triangular series, Murali was an unknown. He had been to England in 1991 as a teen and hidden in the shadows, a learning tour and one where, as with South Africa, he studied the conditions and batting styles and techniques and began to understand how the game was far tougher than your first-class Premier League game.

Being such a student, he understood the value of bowling long spells and perhaps the most impressive accolade offered came from Mahela Jayawardene at the end of the famous Test against South Africa at SSC in 2006.

As he had so often done before, he led an attack that footslogged through 157.2 overs, bowling out a South African team hell-bent on pride restoration after their woeful first-innings performance. In key passages of the game, Murali delivered 64 overs. Despite some slight deterioration, the Sinhalese Sports Club pitch became ever slower and more docile.

Thus, slowly, patiently and skilfully wheedling out the ten South African second innings wickets, was always going to a major achievement. Muralitharan's contribution in the game of 10 wickets for 172 runs during 82.2 overs explains how in such conditions he is so often the backbone of Sri Lanka's bowling.

Muralitharan reeled off over after over, perspiring a little in the scorching heat but never sagging as he bounced up to the crease. In total, he delivered 384 deliveries, all with the same intensity and complete focus. The only time he grumbled was after stumps, quipping incredulously: "This SSC pitch is getting slower and slower with each series."

It was almost a warning to the authorities, urging them to find some more pace and bounce in local pitches. A 34-year-old can't churn out 82.2 overs per Test for much longer.

But Muralitharan has never shirked work and today he again rolled up his sleeves for some good, old fashioned, blue-collar labour.

The chief threat of his doosra was numbed by the slowness of the pitch and instead he relied on pinpoint accuracy and subtle variations in both his flight and angle of delivery. It wasn't his most dazzlingly destructive ten-for, full of explosive wrong'uns and wonder balls, but it was still absorbing to watch and a brilliant effort.

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