October 29 Tuesday 2002
Mark Waugh bows out of Test cricket feeling strain from scrutiny

SYDNEY: Mark Waugh, a permanent fixture in Australia's line-up for nearly a decade, dropped out of international cricket on Monday hours after being axed for next week's opening Ashes Test against England.

The 37-year-old batsman, whose 128 Tests placed him fifth on the all-time list of appearances in world cricket, said he knew his international career was over but would continue to play first-class cricket for New South Wales.

His name will be missing from Australia's Test line-up for the first time since Australia played New Zealand in Auckland in March 1993 -- a run of 107 consecutive Tests. One of Australia's most gifted, yet enigmatic batsmen, Waugh went out after scoring 8,029 runs and taking a world record 181 catches.

"While I'm disappointed not to play for Australia again I've been very lucky to have played for so long in a great era of Australian cricket," Waugh told a press conference at the Sydney Cricket Ground after the team announcement.

"But at this stage I will continue to play first-class cricket for New South Wales." Waugh said he was "a bit emotional" when told he had been dropped from the squad, but added that he had "had a great career so why worry? It's got to come to an end and there are a lot of people worse off than me."

In Waugh's place, selectors preferred South Australian captain Darren Lehmann, who has English county experience with Yorkshire.

Waugh was renown for his effortless and sometimes casual nature at the batting crease but the twin brother of Test skipper Steve was rarely out of the spotlight once it was revealed in 1998 that he took money from an Indian bookmaker in Sri Lanka four years earlier.

The pressure tightened while he battled poor form in the following years and Waugh admitted on Monday he felt worn down. "I didn't really enjoy the last bit of my career, especially in the last three Tests (against Pakistan this month)," Waugh said.

"I have handled pressure pretty well through my career but you can only take so much. "The last six months or so, whenever I pick up the papers my name is mentioned and every time I go out to bat whatever I do there will be close scrutiny.

"If I make runs someone is going to say it will be a scratchy 50, if I don't make runs he's out of form, if I drop a catch it might lose the game for the team and I don't think that was the ideal way to play your cricket."

Waugh agreed that he had not scored enough runs, compiling just 25 from his last three innings as Australia crushed Pakistan in Colombo and Sharjah.

Chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns told Waugh on Saturday that he was out of the Test team because of his form. Since his Test debut against England in the fourth Test at the Adelaide Oval in January 1991 where he scored 138, Waugh has been virtually an ever-present in the Australian XI.

He lies second only to Border (156) for most consecutive appearances for his country, 107 of them strung together from 1993 to 2002-03.

His peerless ability in the slips to snap up reflex catches netted him a record 181 dismissals, an average of 1.41 catches a match with former Australian Test skipper Mark Taylor next on 157.

Yet for a batsman of his stylish pedigree Waugh had a frustrating inability to go on and score big centuries. Of his 20 Test tons, Waugh's topscore was an unbeaten 153 against India at Bangalore in March 1998.

Compare that to his brother Steve, who has a highest score of 200, and Test teammates Matthew Hayden's 203, Ricky Ponting's 197, Justin Langer's 223 and Adam Gilchrist's unbeaten 204.

Selectors named a 12-man squad for the opening Test, with fast bowler Jason Gillespie set to play if he recovers from the calf muscle injury which has sidelined him for the past two Tests.

Lehmann had waited years for the recall after cementing his place in the Australian one-day side following the axing of the Waugh twins earlier this year.

His limited Test appearances have yielded 228 runs at an average of 28.50, including 98 against Pakistan at Rawalpindi in 1998-99.

"I'm not getting any younger, so I have got to make every post a winner and play as well as I possibly can," Lehmann said.

Hohns said Lehmann's age was not an issue compared to younger contenders Jimmy Maher, Mike Hussey, Simon Katich and Michael Clarke. Lehmann has been the reserve batsman on Australia's last two Test tours.

"Darren has been the next cab off the rank for the last three or four tours and it's only natural that he warrants this opportunity," Hohns said.

Australia: Stephen Waugh (captain), Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting, Darren Lehmann, Damien Martyn, Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne, Jason Gillespie, Brett Lee, Andrew Bichel, Glenn McGrath (12th man to be named on morning of match).