Sport | Cricket
Fitting end for McGrath
His long association with the game and team came to an end on April 28.
- By K.R. Nayar, Staff Reporter
- Published: 23:38 May 3, 2009
- Image Credit: Reuters
- Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath,
Bridgetown, Barbados: His long association with the game and team came to an end on April 28.
Glenn McGrath, who was declared the Player of the Tournament, thanked his teammates for all the support over the years.
He bid goodbye to international cricket after his appearance in the final.
There was so much to say, yet words were hardly enough.
"The joy I derived from playing with these guys has been fantastic.
"In fact, all of us had begun this tournament with the self-belief that we can win every game we played," he said.
McGrath earned 15 points during the course of the tournament, including three Player of the Match awards.
His closest rival was Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene who stood on 11 points, while McGrath's team-mate, opener Matthew Hayden and New Zealand's all-rounder Scot Styris finished with nine points each.
Gone for good
These points were given by members of the television commentary team after each match, with three points for their choice as the man of the match, second choice getting two points and the third pick receiving one.
All those points were then added up to pick the Player of the Tournament.
All matches, including the final, were included in the process.
McGrath took 26 wickets to emerge as the most successful bowler in the World Cup. Now that he was leaving the game for good, one expected him to be a little lenient in his approach to the game.
Last over
That's when the question 'what is it that is required to beat the Australians?' was posed to him.
His reply was, "I don't think I will give it away for free."
He added, "I fully expect Australia to win every game.
"I know the quality of these players." Ponting was planning to give McGrath the last over of the innings when bad light forced Jayawardene to ask him not to give the ball to McGrath or Shaun Tait.
Thus McGrath ended his career taking the wicket of Russel Arnold by having him caught by wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist.
"The catch with Gilly, I feel is the perfect way to finish," said the lanky pace ace.
Success was a part of him till the very end.
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