Cricket:Shane Warne believes Muttiah Muralitharan's record Test wicket haul of 800 will never be beaten.
The Sri Lanka spinner set the mark with his final ball in Test cricket today, taking the scalp of Pragyan Ojha to bring India’s second innings to an end in the first Test at Galle.
Muralitharan had announced before the start of the series that he would retire from the longest form of the game following the first Test, which he went into needing eight wickets to become the first man to reach 800.
Five wickets in India’s first innings put the 38-year-old in a great position and he duly completed the feat this morning.
Warne, who is second to Muralitharan in the all-time list on 708, said: “I don’t think anyone will get there, so well done to Murali for getting his 800.
“The way he’s gone about it has been amazing. There’s been a lot of controversy about his action but at the end of the day the ICC (International Cricket Council) cleared him, he’s allowed to play, and what he did with the ball was amazing.
“To face it was quite difficult, especially in those spinning conditions in Sri Lanka.”
Warne and Muralitharan vied for the title of the world’s best spinner for much of the last two decades, but Warne’s retirement in 2007 allowed his rival to move well past the Australian’s mark.
“We always kept an eye on each other,” said Warne. “There was a lot to like about Murali, he always had a smile on his face and he always seemed to be enjoying his cricket.
“I admired him from a distance and when we played against each other we always tried to outdo each other. It was more about Australia and Sri Lanka but it was good fun the little battle within the big battle.”