Steve Waugh's Last Test 2004

Lore & Background

Waugh was a part of the Australian team that won their first world title during the 1987 Cricket World Cup. As Australian captain from 1997 to 2004, he led Australia to fifteen of their record sixteen consecutive Test wins, and to victory in the 1999 Cricket World Cup. Waugh is considered the most successful Test captain in history with 41 victories and a winning ratio of 72%. Born in New South Wales, where he began his first-class cricket career in 1984, he captained the Australian Test cricket team from 1999 to 2004, and was the most capped Test cricket player in history, with 168 appearances, until Sachin Tendulkar of India broke this record in 2010. Waugh was the world number 1 all-rounder in both Test and One Day International (ODI) cricket until back issues forced him to give up bowling. He concentrated only on batting and went on to become one of the leading batsmen of his time. He is one of only fourteen players to have scored more than 10,000 Test runs. He was named Australian of the Year in 2004 for his philanthropic work, and inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame in front of his home fans at the Sydney Cricket Ground in January 2010. Waugh has been included in a list of one hundred Australian Living Treasures by the National Trust of Australia, awarded the Order of Australia and the Australian Sports Medal. Known as an attacking and sometimes ruthlessly efficient captain, described in 2003 as a 'cold-blooded, scientific' leader, cricket columnist of The Times Simon Barnes noted that 'Waugh wants to defeat you personally.' At the end of his final Test match, Waugh was carried by his teammates in a lap of honour around the Sydney Cricket Ground. In a fan poll conducted by the CA in 2017, he was named in the country's best Ashes XI in the last 40 years.

In Their Own Story

The lights at the Sydney Cricket Ground flickered on as evening approached on the final day. Steve Waugh stood at the crease, bat resting lightly against his shoulder, scanning the stands filled with fans waving flags. He knew this was it—the last time he would defend a wicket for Australia in Test cricket. There was no pressure to score runs, only the weight of memory pressing down on his shoulders.

Reader's Guide

At the end of his final Test match, Waugh was carried by his teammates in a lap of honour around the Sydney Cricket Ground. The source does not specify his score in that final innings.

Did You Know?

• Waugh was one of twin boys born to Rodger and Beverley Waugh, arriving four minutes before Mark.
• He made his first-class debut for New South Wales in 1984–85.
• Waugh was the world number 1 all-rounder in both Test and ODI cricket until back issues forced him to give up bowling.
• He is one of only fourteen players to have scored more than 10,000 Test runs.