Congratulations Stevie !!

Donny · Posted: Sat May 03, 2003 7:02 am

Hearty congratulations to our wonderful skipper, Steve Waugh, on becoming Australia's highest scorer of Test centuries.

His 30th. hundred passes the record held for so long by Sir Donald Bradman.

Nicholas · Joined: 06 Mar 2003 Location: Melbourne

He was lucky though, dropped twice, grafted and the bowling is the worst you would ever see. He really is taking the place of a younger guy who could bat much quicker. Bichel showed him up. Must be the best era ever to bat with no bowlers of quality apart from Oz ones.

gobbles21 · Posted: Sat May 03, 2003 9:49 am

Well done Tugga, great to see you continue with the form that you finnished the Aussie summer in. 100 in the 1st practice match and 100 in your 1st test knock on tour.

Well done!

Donny · Posted: Sat May 03, 2003 4:59 pm

A bit ungracious, I thought, Nicholas. This topic is clearly a congratulatory one to a great player.

These days, it's rare that a batsman gets to a century without a bit of luck. Besides, Waugh has had his share of bad decisions.

I think you need to understand just how valuable his innings was. A younger player (Clarke, for instance) might well have played his strokes and made a good looking 30 before getting out.

Gilly and Bic were able to contribute the way they did because of the man at the other end. Bear in mind, the most attacking batsman in world cricket (Gilly) had hit 1 four in the first 74 minutes of his innings.

The wicket was dead as a doornail and although not world beaters, the Windies bowlers were bowling well and drew the appropriate respect. Waugh and Gilly read the situation correctly and played with the necessary restraint.

Nicholas · Joined: 06 Mar 2003 Location: Melbourne

Yeah it probably sounded ungracious in a way but I remember when making a ton against the Windies was the ultimate challenge. These days it would be harder to make one against a Pura Cup team.

couragous cloke · Posted: Sun May 04, 2003 1:08 am

WAT a CHAMP he is. But on this pitch its a bad performace not to make a ton i reckon! WHAT A SHOCKER, expect some fire works from LARA! Wink

Northern Pie · We are watching! Joined: 27 May 2001 Location: Queensland

SOuldn't be a problem for the Best Batting line up in the world though, right courages....oh hang on.....how many west Indians have made a century so far in their innings......

Congratulations to Steve Waugh for a brilliant Century.....any Century is a great one, luck or no luck....if you reach the triple figures then you have done your days work......Steve you are all class mate and a great captain who has never been afraid to wield the Willow....no matter how much you might think the opposition might be keen to bowl you out......

Why is it so hard to give credit where credit is due?????

Cheers

Kristin5 · Fiery Redhead Joined: 19 Apr 2001

It was a fantastic effort by Stevie. Boy, I rue the day when he retires, cos we'll have no solid batsman who can toil away to save an innings as well as Stevie (and Border before him) has done. Not that this innings was one that needed to be saved...but it's nice to know he is there to do the job when necessary.

And to the knockers who are saying it should be easy to score a century against the Windies, well how come Stevie is the one doing it rather that the other specialist batsmen??? Credit where it's due...

Fradam · Joined: 21 Jun 1999 Location: Bendigo, Victoria

well done to Waugh

fairly simple innings though. I think all of us here could make big scores on that pitch against that attack, well all of us but MacGill

JLC · Posted: Mon May 05, 2003 1:00 pm

Steve Waugh is a legend. People should remember he is in the twighlight of his career so i dont expect him to be playing as he is a 28 year old. It is only when Steve is gone that people will notice how important he is to the team.

jlc

Donny · Posted: Mon May 05, 2003 4:53 pm

No, m8, lots of us know already. Did you read the previous posts? Mine, for instance. Nth. Pie's? Kristin's?

HAL · Posted: Mon May 05, 2003 4:54 pm

No I didn't read the previous posts yet. Tell me about the previous posts

Northern Pie · We are watching! Joined: 27 May 2001 Location: Queensland

Hal, you are an idiot........

but who is the bigger idiot, the idiot or the idiot calling the idiot an idiot, idotic really.......

Cheers

HAL · Posted: Tue May 06, 2003 3:38 am

Um, Call me the Global Village Idiot.

Donny · Posted: Fri May 09, 2003 1:37 pm

Waugh hints at batting on
By Andrew Ramsey
May 09, 2003

FACING another bout of speculation over the timing of his retirement, Steve Waugh yesterday provided the strongest indication yet that he's planning for his remarkable career to continue beyond the Test series in the Caribbean.

On the eve of the fourth and final Test against the West Indies in St John's, Antigua, Waugh said his passion for leading Australia and his motivation to perform at Test level remained undiminished.

"I feel good," Waugh said. "I know I'm playing as well as ever right now. You've got to work out whether there's a challenge there, that's the main thing. If there's not a challenge in front of you then what's the point?

"I've always embraced a challenge and wanted one and, if there's not one there, you've got to look elsewhere for it. But right now I still love playing for Australia and I still get motivated by it and I know I'm good enough. So that's a good enough reason right now."

Waugh's record over the past 12 months � 579 Test runs (including three centuries) at an average of 44.54 and captaining Australia to 10 wins in 11 Tests � has removed much of the outside pressure on him to retire.

His fitness has also shown no sign of waning. Even though his legs were cramping as he completed a century in Barbados last week, he has bowled 44 overs in Australia's past two series, which is more than the total he sent down in his first three years as captain.

Waugh will hand over the captaincy reins to one-day skipper Ricky Ponting at the end of the fourth Test, and then spend a few weeks off with his wife, Lynette, and their three children.

Australia's next Test commitment is the historic two-Test series against Bangladesh in July, the first Tests to be played in the northern Australian centres of Darwin and Cairns.

While the prospect of tackling Bangladesh appears about as inviting as a warm beer in the searing Antiguan sun, Waugh is mindful of the occasion's significance for Australian cricket.

"For anyone involved to play in the first Test match in Darwin and Cairns, it would be a big event," he said. "Bangladesh obviously aren't a great side, but it's more the event that you'd want to be part of."

"There are always different challenges. It doesn't have to be a series or an opponent, other things can still challenge you."

Waugh said the next Indian Test tour (scheduled for September 2004) and the forthcoming tour of Sri Lanka (next March) loomed as important ventures because they are the only places Australia have not won during his tenure.

Ricky Ponting's bid for a record-breaking fourth consecutive century in the Caribbean appears shaky as the vice-captain struggles to shake off a virus that has dogged him since the last day of the third Test in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Ponting, the outstanding batsman of the series, missed the training session in St John's yesterday as he continued to battle a high temperature and lethar gy.

Team officials are confident a further day's rest before the game begins late tonight (AEST) will provide sufficient time for him to overcome the as-yet-unidentified ailment.

Australia are expected to take an unchanged line-up into the final Test.