Steve Waugh - What Do You Think?

[MrsTarrant]

Presure on Waugh to go starts again
Wisden Cricinfo staff - June 2, 2003

The ongoing debate over Steve Waugh's future as Australia's captain surfaced again at the weekend with comments from two former players turned commentators, Jeff Thomson and David Hookes, that the time is right for him to step down.

Thomson and Hookes said that with the Australian middle-order aging and with a series against Bangladesh starting in July, Waugh should go in the interest of the team. "It's time to move on and it's a good time to do it when the opposition isn't that good," Thomson argued. "When he [Waugh] got the hundred in Sydney, I thought that was enough. What's he going to prove if he plays Bangladesh? Who cares if Steve Waugh gets a hundred?"

Hookes, a long-standing critic of Waugh, agreed. "I can't see any point [him] playing against Bangladesh. He won't get a hit for starters. Look at the batting," he continued. "You've got him, Lehmann, Ponting and Martyn to come back - they are not young blokes.

Thomson went one step further, suggesting that Glenn McGrath should be relived of his new-ball duties in favour of Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie. "If the wicket's got something in it, you may as well use Gillespie and Lee," Thomson said. "Lee should be opening the bowling, get the choice of ends. To bowl Lee into the wind is not on any more. McGrath wouldn't have to wait long. They are only going to bowl five or six overs."

[Donny]

I'd love to see Tugga hold his form and lead the team to India.

That's the last remaining goal for this great player and captain.

[MrsTarrant]

O.K everyone I believe I have changed my mind when it comes to Steve Waugh. I thought he should retire at one stage which I'm sure some of you are aware of but yes now I think he should stay!

It would be great for him to go to India next year and I think the team really needs him if they are to beat India!

So I vote for Steve Waugh leading the Aussies to India! Yay!

[JLC]

As long as he is playing well then he should keep going. However if he loses form or desire to play then he should stand down.

The players coming into the team should have to EARN their baggy green cap. If you start promoting players for the sake of it the baggy green in value can get tarnished. Michael Clarke looks like a great player in the making but his time will come. I think the debate is Lehmann v Clarke for a spot in the test team.

jlc

[Fradam]

I'd like to see him give it away at the end of the summer.

Give Love or Clarke a go.

[Kristin5]

I think he should play (and captain) for as long as he's providing value to the team, and at this stage he still is.

Good luck in India, Stevie!

[couragous cloke]

i think he's in very good form and should stay for aslong as possible, aussies havent done much wrong under his captaincy and i think there's no real reason for him to leave at the moment.

GO STEVIE!

[The Prototype]

I think he should wait until the India tour, if he is playing good cricket come that time. It will still depend on his games leading up to that, so I would wait awhile until passing judgment.

[angel]

I think he should retire now so we can blood some other players who are performing well. The bowling opp is so bad it wouldn't surprise me if he keeps making runs. He has never wanted to bat high up the order. Promote someone who is prepared to bat anywhere, and now while the opp is so weak.

[MrsTarrant]

'I feel like I'm 20': Steve Waugh
Wisden CricInfo staff - June 3, 2003


So when is Steve Waugh retiring? Not anytime soon, going by his latest comments. In an interview with Reader's Digest, Waugh said that he still has a lot of cricket left in him.

"I know I'm 38 now," said Waugh, "but cricket-wise I feel like I'm 20. I can learn. I think I can improve. I don't dwell on what I have done -- it's what I haven't done."

For a long time now, Waugh's career has seemed to be winding down. He was dropped from Australia's one-day team in the beginning of 2002 and was ignored for the World Cup. In the last Australian summer, there were even calls to drop him from the Test team but he silenced his critics with his 29th Test century -- equalling Don Bradman's record -- in a memorable final Test against England.

The selectors persisted with him for the West Indies tour and Waugh justified the faith reposed in him with another century as he led the way to a 3-1 victory in the Caribbeans. But at 38, is he too old to go on?

"I don't think age should be a factor in anything," Waugh said. "If you're doing the job and you're good at it and you've acquired all that experience over the years, it seems strange to say: 'let's get rid of this bloke and the start the process all over again'. As long as you're competitive and fit, age has nothing to do with it."

Waugh said that he was training harder on his fitness than ever before. Bangladesh, look out.

[MrsTarrant]

Waughs plan to carry on
Wisden Cricinfo staff - June 6, 2003


Steve Waugh has admitted that he is willing to carry on playing first-class cricket for at least another season, suggesting that he wants to stay on as Australia's captain for the immediate future.

His comments came less than 24 hours after his brother Mark confirmed that he would be turning out for New South Wales in 2003-04. Dave Gilbert, the NSW coach, explained that Mark believed he still had a year left in him, and the news was welcomed by Steve as being good for the domestic competition. Speculation over Steve's future as Australian captain began again after the series in the Caribbean, but he effectively threw his hat into the ring by telling reporters that he was keen to play against Bangladesh next month. "I haven't made a final decision but it's all very positive," he said. "I'm preparing as if I'm going to keep playing."

He went on to explain that the forthcoming series was important for Bangladesh's development. "You've got to give them opportunities and chances and I think they have to get some help as well," Waugh said. "If it's not happening at the moment and they are struggling, they need some help from elsewhere. It's just a matter of having faith in these teams."

[Donny]

Another honour for Steve Waugh in Australian Queen's Birthday List
Lynn McConnell - June 9, 2003


Australian Test captain Steve Waugh received another honour today, but this time it was off the field, when he was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in the Queen's Birthday Honours List.

The award was not only for his services to Australian cricket, but also in recognition of his charity work for the Udayan orphanage in India.

Now Australia's most capped Test cricketer (160 Tests), and the scorer of most Test centuries for the country with 30, the award is the latest in a string of achievements as his career moves into its latter stages.

Having confirmed Australia's complete dominance of the world game, both in Test and One-Day International cricket Waugh has ensured the respect for all that Australian cricket represents through its rich history, has been maintained through the modern era of players.

Few players have a feel for the game's past in the manner that Waugh does, and his honour today is a reflection of the role he has played in ensuring the flame is carried from that past to the future not only on the field but in the maintenance of the game's traditions.

He is joined on the Honours List this year by former West Indian international Sir Garfield Sobers, who had strong links with Australia in the 1960s while he played for South Australia in the Sheffield Shield competition, and who was also made an Officer of the Order of Australia.

Former internationals Norman O'Neill and Peter Philpott were joined by administrators David Richards, the former chief executive of the International Cricket Council, and John Mitchell, in receiving the Medal of the Order of Australia.