On Thursday, 22nd July, on a warm afternoon at Galle International stadium, Muttiah Muralitharan took his 800th test wicket and left behind what will forever be a defining moment for cricket.
At the beginning of the 2nd innings, Murali needed 3 more wickets to make it to the 800. Having removed Yuvraj on the 4th day and Harbhajan Singh on the 5th day, Murali had to wait for his moment on Day 5 as lbw and stumping appeals were turned down and paceman Malinga was liable to blast the Indian tail away at any moment.
At around 1:55 pm, the phenomenal off-spinner snared India’s last wicket, Pragyan Ojha, by tossing one just outside the off stump which brushed Ojha’s bat and carried to Mahela Jayawardene at first slip. Murali had taken his 800th wicket.
Before the test match against India, Muralitharan had announced that it would be his last in test cricket, 800 wickets or not. With 8 wickets short of the big number, very few were expecting Murli to write his name in history with such style and resilience. The 37-year-old virtuoso spent an agonising 228 minutes and 141 deliveries waiting for number 800.
During this last test match of his career, firecrackers went off at the start of every day's play to celebrate Muralitharan's stupendous career and he was given a guard of honour by both the Indian and Sri Lankan players during the match.
Muttiah Muralitharan made his debut in 1992 against Australia. He went on to take his first 100 test wickets in 27 Tests. The evolution of the genius is proven by the fact that the hundreds thereafter came in 15, 16, 14, 15, 14 and 12 Tests respectively. Murali has constantly reinvented himself. His 800 wickets came at an average of 22.72.
The off-spinner has been one of the most talked about players in contemporary cricket as he has had the world cricket debating about his unorthodox and weird bowling action. One of the most controversial spinners in the world, Murali’s debate-inducing moves were in fact responsible for cricket's first proper attempt to define the legal delivery. While studying Murali's action, it was noticed that some of the finest bowlers known for their smooth actions did send down illegal deliveries too.
The mechanics of his bowling action were investigated and cleared on more than one occasion by the International Cricket Council. And then in 2005 the ICC amended its rules to allow bowlers to straighten their arms by up to 15 degrees.
Before the start of the Galle Test, Anil Kumble spoke of Murali’s achievement, "When you see that Murali has played exactly the same number of Tests as me and taken 173 wickets more," he said, "you begin to understand the magnitude of his achievement."
The magnitude of his achievement lies significantly in the legacy he has left behind. The top 3 players who have ever come close to his tally, Shane Warne, Anil Kumble and Glenn McGrath have all retired from test cricket. More importantly, their tally came no where close to the stupendous 800. And so at the moment, there isn’t anyone in the horizon who seems to be able to touch the maestro’s record. With interest in test cricket waning, this page in history might be untouched forever.
Magical Murali Moments
Murali had an enthralling battle for supremacy with Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne as both kept re-writing the highest wicket record.
It was the summer of 2004. Muralitharan claimed the title for highest wicket taker in test cricket for a few months before Australia’s Shane Warne took over. What followed was one of the most eagerly followed and watched series in the history of cricket. Australia Vs Sri Lanka in 2004 had its most interesting moments in the two bowlers who tried to surpass each other. Every match was a tight call. Everyone was glued to their television screens as two maestros of bowling battled it out for the top spot. Murali got the upper hand in the second test as he reached 500 wickets on his home ground in Kandy.
In 2006, in a 2 test series against South Africa, Murali’s 22 wickets in 2 tests was a record for any bowler in a two test series. His worst figures in that entire series were 4/41 in the first innings of the first test.
In July 2007, Muttiah Muralitharan became the second bowler after Warne to capture 700 Test wickets. Still not able to overtake Warne, he reclaimed the record during the first Test against England at Kandy on 3 December 2007. Muralitharan reached the mark in his 116th Test – 29 fewer than Warne – and had conceded only 21.77 runs per wicket compared to the Australian's 25.41. This was also Muralitharan's 61st 5-wicket haul.
He also holds records for taking 10 wickets in a match, an astonishing 22 times and five wickets in an innings, 67 times, the most by any bowler.
In January 1998, Murali took his first ten-wicket haul against Zimbabwe in the first Test at Kandy. Sri Lanka won by eight wickets and Murali had figures of 12 for 117.
And in August that same year he produced his career-best Test match figures of 16 for 220, in the one-off Test against England. In England's second innings Murali bowled a marathon 54.2 overs to pick up 9 for 65 runs.
In 2000, at a time when India were considered the king of spins, he reduced India from 99/2 to 129/6 in a matter of 10 overs, including the wicket of Robin Singh who became his 200th ODI victim. When he snapped up Tendulkar, the end came swiftly. No one had seen India surrender so meekly to spin.
The list is endless. The achievements are many and great. But the magic of Murali has walked its final mile. And he will forever be remembered for his a genius, and as an inspiration for future cricketers.
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