Perth, Aug 01: Steve Waugh is second only to Don Bradman as the best cricketer Australia has produced, former Australian coach Geoff Marsh said here today. Marsh, now coach of Zimbabwe, said 38-year-old Waugh has resurrected his career this year, scoring four centuries in his last eight test innings, following calls for his retirement just eight months ago. "I think he has to be rated as one of the best, if not the (best)... Obviously Bradman stands alone, but I reckon his record speaks for itself," marsh said of Waugh, who both made their national debuts in 1985/86. "His captaincy record is outstanding and his performance with the bat speaks for itself. "All Stephen's (32) hundreds in test cricket, they are all under pressure."

Waugh, Test cricket's most successful captain, is only 653 runs behind the highest runscorer in test history, Allan Border, and is on target to overhaul his old skipper's mark in the next 12 months with home series against Zimbabwe (two Tests), India (four Tests) and Sri Lanka (two Tests).



Bureau Report