The Australian captain Mark Taylor announced his retirement from international cricket yesterday, saying his heart was no longer in the game.
"I know that today I've made the right decision," Taylor told a packed news conference in Sydney. "I am starting to lose the edge to compete, particularly on the international stage."
Taylor, 34, said he had decided to stand down as Australian Test captain because he believed he would not perform at his best in the upcoming tour of the West Indies.
He said he wanted to spend more time with his family but also wanted to stay involved in the game, either as a television commentator or an administrator. He said he would continue playing first-class cricket for New South Wales in the Sheffield Shield state competition.
"I have tried to base the majority of this decision on whether I could go to the West Indies and whether I think I could do well as a person and as a player," Taylor said.
"And that's the main reason I am not going to the West Indies, because I feel that my heart is not quite in it and if it is not in it I won't do well. I still think we may win the series but that is not why I should go and keep playing."
An Australian Cricket Board (ACB) spokesman said the board would pick a new captain at its next meeting on February 12th.
Steve Waugh, the current Test vice-captain and one-day captain, is considered his likely successor although Taylor said Shane Warne and Mark Waugh would also make good captains.
Taylor would not be drawn on his preferred candidate, but said he thought the new captain should lead Australia in both forms of the game.
ACB chairman Denis Rogers said Taylor's departure was a sad moment for Australian cricket. "Mark Taylor has set a new benchmark in the professional era for Australian captains to match and exceed," Rogers said. "He has been an excellent on and off field leader for Australian cricket."
Taylor's decision to retire, like most of the decisions that marked his captaincy, was dignified and perfectly timed. He made his Test debut against the West Indies in Sydney in 1988 and went on to play 104 tests, finishing his career against England in the fifth and final Ashes Test in Sydney last month.
He scored a total of 7,525 Test runs - the second most by an Australian - at an average of 43.50, scoring 19 centuries and taking a world record 157 catches. Taylor replaced Allan Border as Australian captain in May 1994 and went on to lead his country in 50 Tests, for 26 wins, 11 draws and 13 losses. He also played in 113 limited-over internationals, scoring 3,514 runs.
Taylor almost gave the captaincy away two years ago when his form slumped so badly that he was in danger of being dropped from the team during the 1997 Ashes series. But he fought back to prove himself not only a great batsman and captain but a man of rare character.
The defining moment of his career came in October last year when he equalled Don Bradman's 334 for the highest score by an Australian in Test cricket. But rather than pass Bradman and go for the world record, Taylor unselfishly declared to give the team a chance to win.
"I have achieved more in this game than I thought I would," Taylor said. "I have gained more from cricket than I have given cricket. I am not leaving sad, I am leaving it happy and I am looking forward to the next few years."
