Glenn McGrath retires

Glenn McGrath is going to retire from all forms of cricket after the World Cup. This means that that his last Test will be against England at his home ground of Sydney.

We always hated Glenn McGrath, but he won us over to a degree. We don't exactly love him now, but there's a grudging respect. For years we couldn't work out how this medium-pacer who did relatively little with the ball could take so many wickets for so few runs. 'Relentless' and 'accuracy' are the two words which have appeared in every Glenn McGrath article, but it's not just that.

It's partly his height and the bounce that produces. It's partly his professionalism, always working at his game. It's partly his mind, knowing exactly where to bowl to each batsman - and we mean EXACTLY. It's his ability to judge a pitch quickly and immediately adjust his length.

It's also his near-unique ability to produce all of these things under great pressure. That's partly down to his immense experience these days, but it's the sign of a hugely robust character as well. And you can't fault that action.

The first time we ever saw him bowl live, we were side-on to the wicket. We were struck by how he ran in for a mile, before coming to a virtual standstill prior to his delivery stride. We expected a bit more thrust from a quick bowler, but the results speak for themselves, we suppose.